A suicide car bomber targeted a school bus in southwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, resulting in the deaths of five individuals, including at least three children, and injuring 38 others, according to officials.
This incident marks another attack in the volatile region of Balochistan.
Balochistan has long been a hotspot for rebellion, with various separatist factions conducting attacks, particularly the outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which the United States designated as a terrorist organization back in 2019.
Yasir Iqbal, a local deputy commissioner, reported that the bombing occurred on the outskirts of Kuduzar city while the bus was en route to a military school.
The military responded swiftly, and ambulances transported the injured to nearby hospitals. Local broadcasts showed severely damaged buses along with debris scattered across the area.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the bombing, but suspicion might lean towards Baloch separatists, who often target both security forces and civilians.
In response, Pakistani Home Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the attack, expressing profound sorrow over the loss of innocent lives, particularly children. He referred to the attackers as “beasts” and called their actions a “pure wild barrage against the innocent.”
The military described the bombing as “another horrific attack,” alleging it was orchestrated by India and executed by proxies in Balochistan. There was no immediate reaction from New Delhi.
Initially, reports indicated four children had died; however, officials later revised that to include two adults among the deceased, voicing concerns that the casualty count could rise given some children’s critical conditions.
Most attacks in the region have been attributed to the BLA, which claims to have support from India, a claim New Delhi vehemently denies.
One notable incident involved BLA rebels who killed 33 soldiers in March during an assault on a train crowded with passengers.
Recently, the BLA threatened to escalate attacks against the “Pakistani military and its collaborators,” stating its objective is to establish a peaceful, prosperous, and independent Balochistan.
Interestingly, amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan, the BLA made a rare appeal to India for support, coinciding with a surge in cross-border hostilities between the two nuclear-armed nations.
India has yet to respond to this appeal.
Extremist factions are still active in Balochistan, and while attacks on school children are uncommon for separatists in the region, they have occurred in other areas of the northwest in recent times.
Despite the presence of government and private schools throughout Pakistan, the military also operates a substantial number of educational institutions catering to both civilian children and military personnel.
A tragic reminder of the region’s violent history is the deadly 2014 attack launched by the Pakistani Taliban on a military-run school in Peshawar, which claimed 154 lives.
