By Staff Reporter
KARACHI: Two Chinese nationals were among three people killed, and a dozen others injured near Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport on Sunday evening in a terrorist attack claimed by a separatist militant group, the Chinese embassy and local officials said.
The blast, suspected to be an improvised explosive device (IED), targeted a convoy of Chinese engineers working on a power project in Sindh province, said the Chinese embassy and Provincial Home Minister Zia Ul Hassan Lanjar.
“At around 11 pm on October 6th, a convoy carrying Chinese staff of the Port Qasim Electric Power Company (Private) Limited was attacked near Jinnah International Airport, Karachi, causing two Chinese deaths, one Chinese injury, and some local casualties,” the embassy stated.
Minister Lanjar said authorities suspect an IED explosion. “An investigation has been launched, and CCTV footage is being acquired.”
All injured individuals have been transferred to Jinnah Hospital for emergency treatment; police officers were among those injured.
The blast was reportedly heard in various areas around the city, with videos showing flames engulfing cars and a thick column of smoke rising from the scene. The site was cordoned off with heavy military deployment.
Initially, Lanjar suspected an oil tanker blast but later confirmed it was an attack targeting foreigners, specifically Chinese nationals.
The Chinese embassy condemned the attack, expressing “deep condolences to the innocent victims of both countries and sincere sympathies to the injured and their families.” They are making every effort to handle the aftermath with the Pakistani side.
“The Chinese Embassy and Consulates General in Pakistan have launched an emergency plan immediately, requesting the Pakistani side to thoroughly investigate the attack, severely punish the perpetrators, and take all necessary measures to protect the safety of Chinese citizens, institutions, and projects in Pakistan.”
The embassy urged Chinese citizens, enterprises, and projects in Pakistan to “be vigilant, pay close attention to the security situation, strengthen security measures, and make every effort to take safety precautions.”
Pakistan’s foreign office also denounced the attack, vowing to apprehend those responsible. “This barbaric act will not go unpunished.”
Thousands of Chinese workers are in Pakistan, primarily involved in Beijing’s multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor projects, which include several infrastructure and energy projects in Balochistan.
In a statement emailed to journalists, the separatist militant group Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the explosion, stating it used a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device to target “a high-level convoy of Chinese engineers and investors” coming from Karachi’s airport.
The BLA is a banned secessionist armed group part of a broader rebellion in Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest and least populated and developed province, bordering Iran and Afghanistan.
The BLA specifically targets Chinese interests, particularly the strategic port of Gwadar on the Arabian Sea, accusing Beijing of helping Islamabad exploit the province. It has killed Chinese citizens working in the region and attacked Beijing’s consulate in Karachi.
In August, the BLA launched coordinated attacks in the province, killing over 70 people.
Pakistan has heightened security as it prepares to host the leaders’ summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
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