Six coal miners shot dead in Balochistan

Victims belonged to Shia Hazara community and attack was 'clearly sectarian' in nature, says DC Kachi.

QUETTA: Six coal miners were shot dead while another was injured in Mach area of Kachi district - about 90 kilometers off Quetta - on Friday.

“The victims are labourers who belonged to the Shia Hazara community. It is clearly a sectarian targeted killing,” DC Kachi Waheed Shah told Express Tribune.

The coal miners were returning from a trip to Mach bazaar, where they often went to shop on Fridays. The crime scene is seven kilometer off the main highway.

“As they crossed a huge drainage off the national highway, a group of armed men opened fire at their vehicle,” added DC Shah.

Levies officials and security forces reached the spot soon after the incident and cordoned off the area. However, the assailants had already escaped by then.  The injured is said to be in a critical condition.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a militant group officially banned by the government in 2002, usually claims responsibility for attacks on Shia Muslims.

A week ago, seven passenger buses of Shia pilgrims were attacked with a car bomb. The blast killed two personnel of Frontier Corps (FC) while Shia pilgrims remained unhurt in the attack.

Upon observing a car suspiciously parked near the highway, FC personnel stopped the buses from proceeding on the National Highway in the Dringar area of Mastung. As they tried to search the vehicle, a explosion took place.