Three dead, seven injured as passenger bus targeted in Balochistan's Kalat

• Exact number of passengers on board bus remains unknown.
• Police and FC personnel have cordoned off the area.
• PM condemns incident; CM Bugti seeks incident report. 

KALAT: At least three people were killed and seven others sustained injuries after unidentified assailants opened gunfire on a passenger coach travelling from Karachi to Quetta near a checkpost in Balochistan's Kalat, police said on Wednesday.

This is the second such attack in less than a week in the restive province, which has witnessed a deadly year with scores of fatalities due to terrorist attacks.

The attack occurred when the bus approached Nemargh Cross near Kalat district. The assailants, who were waiting on top of nearby mountains, first opened fire and then hurled hand grenades at the vehicle.

The vehicles that run on this route carry approximately 40 to 50 passengers. However, the exact number of passengers on board the targeted bus remains unknown.

Speaking to Geo News, Balochistan government spokesperson, Shahid Rind noted that security agencies, district authorities, and rescue teams reached the scene immediately. The wounded were transferred to the Qalat DHQ Hospital, where an emergency has been declared.

Security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation to pursue the assailants, Rind said, adding that the attackers are still at large. "Initial reports suggest that the attackers were waiting to strike. They closed the street from both sides," he added.  

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has strongly condemned the terrorist incident, which he said was carried out by the Fitna al Hindustan — a term used for terrorist organisations in Balochistan.

He offered prayers for the martyrs and extended his sympathies to the bereaved families, praying for patience and resilience during their difficult time.

The PM also directed authorities to provide immediate medical assistance to the injured.

He warned that terrorists targeting innocent, unarmed civilians would be made to pay a heavy price, vowing that perpetrators would not escape justice.

Reiterating the government’s stance, the prime minister affirmed that both his administration and the country’s security forces were committed to eradicating terrorism from the nation.

The attack came days after at least nine passengers travelling on two Punjab-bound coaches were abducted and killed by unidentified armed men in Sur-Dakai area, on the border between Balochistan’s Zhob and Loralai districts.

Assistant Commissioner Zhob, Naveed Alam, said the attackers opened fire on the abducted passengers after taking them away from the vehicles, adding that the bodies were being transported to Rakhni for dispatch to their native towns in Punjab.

Rind had said that Fitna al Hindustan had carried out the attacks.

Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti had declared that the killers of innocent civilians were not worthy of any mercy. "Those who murder innocent people will be hunted to the last man," the chief minister said.