An attack targeting a train transporting military personnel killed 20 and injured around 70 people in Pakistan in the early hours of Sunday. The train was travelling through Chaman Phatak station in Quetta, the capital of the western Balochistan region.
The train, allegedly carrying 300 personnel, became a target of a Suicide Vehicle-born attack in Pakistan after picking up passengers. The Majeed Brigade of Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) separatist group has claimed responsibility for the blast, reported the BBC.
Loud Bang
Eyewitnesses told the AFP that they heard a loud band when the explosion ripped through the area. Some said that the blast was heard in various distant areas of the city and it caused damage to nearby buildings. A fire reported to have sparked in nearby cars was also controlled after intense efforts involving multiple fire brigade vehicles.
A mangled train carriage was seen as people clambered over the wreckage to find survivors, Pakistani newspaper Dawn reported. Multiple ambulances could be seen arriving at the site in a video.
Meanwhile, the police, the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and the bomb disposal squad rushed to the incident site to collect evidence. Pakistan Railways said rescue trucks and a relief train were also dispatched to the attack site to assist in emergency operations.
‘Heinous Bomb Explosion’
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari strongly condemned the “heinous bomb explosion”.
This isn’t the first time that BLA has targeted trains in Balochistan. In the last two years, the Jaffar Express has come under attack from the armed group several times.
BLA often accuses Pakistan’s federal government of exploiting the rich mineral resources of its largest province without the local population benefiting. Balochistan, nearly 40% of Pakistan’s land, shares volatile borders with Iran and Afghanistan and is home to about 5% of the country’s people.
(with inputs from Reuters)
