A powerful bomb has exploded near railway track in southwest Pakistan, killing at least 19 people
CNN • • general
Key Points:
- A suicide bomb attack near a railway station in Quetta, southwestern Pakistan, killed at least 23 people and injured 71 as a train was passing through, with rescue operations ongoing.
- The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a militant group seeking independence from Pakistan, claimed responsibility for the attack, which police confirmed was a suicide blast.
- Authorities have cordoned off the area for investigation, and hospitals in Quetta have declared an emergency to treat the injured.
- Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi visited Quetta, expressing solidarity with victims and condemning the attack as an act of extreme brutality.
- Balochistan province has a history of violence from separatist groups like the BLA, which claimed responsibility for earlier deadly attacks in the region, including incidents in February that killed at least 33 people.