A government spokesperson said two roadside bombs hours apart targeted police vehicles in volatile southwestern Pakistan on Monday, killing four and wounding 22, mostly civilian pedestrians.
In the first attack in Quetta, the provincial capital of Baluchistan, two police officers, and two civilians were killed. Four people were injured hours later when a second bomb exploded in the city near a police vehicle, according to the police.
Pakistani Taliban’s increased assaults
The illegal Baluchistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the initial attack in a statement. The BLA designated a terrorist organization by the United States in 2019, stated that its fighters targeted the vehicle of a police officer responsible for the arrest of group members.
Since November, when they ended a month-long cease-fire with the government, the Pakistani Taliban have increased their assaults on troops and police across Pakistan, despite the fact that such attacks are common.
Separatists in Baluchistan have demanded complete autonomy or a larger share of the province’s gas and mineral resources for more than a decade.
Read more: California Issues A Flood Warning As Snowmelt Feeds The American River
Condemnation of attack by Pakistani officials
Pakistan’s top intelligence agency arrested Gulzar Imam, also known as Shambay, who was the militant founder and leader of another banned group, the Baluch Nationalist Army, days before Monday’s attack in Quetta.
The BNA is an umbrella organization for Baluch insurgents formed when the Baluch Republican Army and the United Baluch Army merged.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Baluchistan’s Chief Minister Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo condemned the attack in separate statements. They requested that the wounded receive the best possible medical care.
In Baluchistan and elsewhere, the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, has claimed responsibility for similar attacks in the past. The terrorist organization is distinct from but allied with the Afghan Taliban.
The latest attack comes one day after the TTP killed two police officers in Quetta with gunfire. When police returned fire after being attacked in the city on Sunday evening, they also killed one of the attackers.
Read more: UK Man Pushed His Pregnant Wife Off Arthur’s Seat, Causing Her Death
