Two Chinese engineers were killed and at least 10 people were injured in a suspected suicide attack last night near Jinnah international airport in Karachi, Pakistan.
A third body was also found, which is thought to be that of the attacker.
Reuters reports that the Sunday night attack was claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist group with a track record of attacking Chinese construction workers.
A statement issued by the group today said the explosion was an attack carried out by them using a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device.
The Chinese embassy in Islamabad also issued a statement saying the attack was carried out on a convoy from the Port Qasim Electric Power Company that was travelling to the airport.
It said: “The Chinese Embassy and Consulates General in Pakistan strongly condemn this terrorist attack, express deep condolences to the innocent victims of both countries and sincere sympathies to the injured and their families.”
Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister of Pakistan, called the attack a “heinous act” and offered his condolences to the Chinese people.
“The perpetrators of this dastardly incident cannot be Pakistanis but are sworn enemies of Pakistan. An immediate investigation is underway to identify them and bring them to justice,” he wrote on X.
Building power plants
The engineers were in Pakistan to work on two coal power plants at Port Qasim, near Karachi. This is a $1.9bn project, and when complete will generate about 1.3GW of power.
The attack is part of a pattern of actions against Chinese workers involved in the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor between the two countries as part of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Authorities estimate that the BLA has around 3,000 fighters. It has regularly targeted Chinese nationals in the region.
In April 2022, the group killed three Chinese tutors and a Pakistani driver in a suicide bombing near Karachi University’s Confucius Institute. And in November 2018, gunmen killed at least four people in an attack on the Chinese consulate in Karachi.
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