AT LEAST six people, including four children, were killed on Wednesday when a school bus was targeted in a bombing in Khuzdar district of Balochistan province in southwestern Pakistan. The bus was on its way to a school attended by children of army personnel and civilians.
The dead included the bus driver and his assistant.
Prime minister Shehbaz Sharif accused India of supporting the militants behind the attack. “Terrorists operating under Indian patronage attacking innocent children on a school bus is clear evidence of their hostility,” his statement said.
The military also alleged that the attack was “planned and orchestrated” by India.
Earlier this month, a ceasefire agreement was reached between India and Pakistan after their most serious conflict in decades. The recent violence comes almost two weeks after that agreement.
The two countries often accuse each other of backing militant groups operating in their respective territories.
The recent escalation followed an attack on tourists in Pahalgam in Indian-administered Kashmir, which India blamed on Pakistan. India later retaliated. Pakistan denied involvement in that incident.
'Probe suggests suicide bombing'
No group has claimed responsibility for Wednesday's attack so far.
Balochistan chief minister Sarfraz Bugti said the dead included four children, the bus driver and his assistant.
“A bus carrying children of the APS (Army Public School) was targeted with a bomb, the nature of which is still being determined,” Yasir Iqbal Dashti, a senior government official in Khuzdar, told AFP. “The initial probe suggests it was a suicide bombing,” he added.
A senior police official confirmed the death toll to AFP on condition of anonymity, saying over two dozen people were injured.
Earlier, the military had said in a statement that five people had been killed, including three children.
Images circulated on social media showed the wreckage of the school bus and scattered school bags.
The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) is known to be active in the region and has been responsible for several recent attacks, mostly targeting security forces and outsiders.
In March, the BLA seized a train carrying hundreds of passengers, leading to the deaths of dozens of militants and off-duty security personnel.
In 2014, the Army Public School in Peshawar was attacked by Pakistan Taliban gunmen who killed more than 150 people, mostly students. That attack led to a large-scale crackdown on militancy in the border areas.
(With inputs from agencies)
