7 police personnel killed and dozens others injured when powerful went off in Quetta
- October 18, 2017, 3:55 pm
- Breaking News
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7 police personnel killed and dozens others injured when powerful went off in Quetta
QUETTA, Oct 18 (NNI): As many as seven police personnel were killed and more than 22 others sustained injuries when a powerful bomb went off near their vehicle in Sariab Road area of Quetta on Wednesday morning.
The police truck carrying 35 personnel was targeted by a huge bomb at Sibi Road off Sariab Road. The blast was so powerful that the truck was left badly mangled and caused critical injuries to the security men.
According to eyewitnesses, a white car parked on the roadside exploded as a truck carrying around 30 Rapid Response Force (RRF) personnel passed by.
Following the bombing, the vehicle caught fire. The blast caused damage to the vehicles and a rickshaw parked nearby.
Rescue teams immediately rushed to the spot and shifted bodies and the injured persons to Quetta Civil Hospital.
Police officials said terrorists wanted to blow the security agency vehicle carrying the personnel to their duty station.
Security forces have cordoned off the area while BDS personnel are collecting evidence to ascertain exact nature of the blast.
Following the blast, the entire area was picketed and a search operation was kick-started.
Police officials said the blast was feared to be a suicide bombing; however, it was not ascertained as yet.
Talking to media, Balochistan Home Minister Sarfraz Bugti said the attack seems vehicle-borne, but added that investigations are being conducted to determine the exact nature of the blast.
Bugti said an emergency has been declared in all the hospitals of the city.
"The people and government of Balochistan will not be deterred from the fight against terrorism," he said, adding the fight will continue till the last terrorist remains.
The minister said the facilitator of this attack, like others before, will be traced and brought to book.
Bugti said a diversion has been created to accommodate traffic on the by-pass as the site of today's incident will remain closed until tomorrow since a forensic team from Lahore is en route to help in the investigation.
Answering a question, he said fighting an enemy who has already decided to die is not easy but the security forces are still fighting them. NNI
