Quetta: Armed assailants attacked a passenger bus in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province on Tuesday, forcibly removing travelers before killing seven of them and fleeing the scene, local officials confirmed.
The incident occurred in the Rakni district, where unidentified gunmen intercepted buses traveling from Quetta to Punjab province. According to police, the assailants selectively executed passengers who were from Punjab.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. However, suspicions may fall on Baloch separatist groups, which have long waged an armed insurgency for independence from Pakistan. These groups have frequently targeted both security forces and civilians in Balochistan and other parts of the country.
Despite Pakistani authorities' claims of suppressing the Baloch insurgency, separatist groups continue to launch high-profile attacks, demonstrating their operational capabilities.
Pakistan has witnessed a surge in militant violence, particularly in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. While the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Baloch separatists are responsible for most attacks, other extremist groups, including ISIS, are also active in the region.
In a separate incident, at least seven Pakistani soldiers including a high rank officer were killed on Saturday in a militant assault in Miranshah, a town near the Durand Line in northwestern Pakistan.
According to a report by the Islamabad-based Center for Security Studies, militant attacks in Pakistan resulted in 1,600 deaths, including civilians, in 2024.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused the TTP of operating from safe havens in Afghanistan, claiming the group orchestrates attacks from across the border. The Afghan Taliban have consistently denied these allegations, insisting that Afghan territory is not used to launch attacks against any country.
However, a recent United Nations Security Council report suggests otherwise. Released last week, the report states that the Taliban administration in Kabul provides "logistical, operational, and financial support" to the TTP, further complicating the security situation in the region.
