At least 14 passengers, including Pakistan Navy personnel, were offloaded from buses on the Makran Coastal Highway in Balochistan's Ormara area and were shot dead by terrorists on the Makran Coastal Highway early Tuesday.
Political pundits say that India has intensified its subversive activities in Balochistan through separatists. First attack was occurred in Quetta and Chaman.and Now in Makran.
“At his weekly news briefing in Islamabad on Thursday, Foreign office Spokesperson Dr Muhammad Faisal recalled that Indian spy Kulbhushan Yadav was also captured from Balochistan, and the information retrieved from him was shared with India as well as the international community.
Referring to the Indian atrocities in occupied Kashmir, the spokesperson urged the international community to call upon New Delhi to halt its oppression and move towards resolution of the lingering dispute.
Responding to a question about Kartarpur Corridor, the spokesperson hoped that India would agree to a meeting with Pakistan at the earliest to finalize the draft for operationalization of the corridor.
To a question about Afghan peace process, the spokesperson said talks scheduled to be held in Doha from tomorrow is a positive development and Pakistan hopes this will lead to durable peace and stability in Afghanistan.
He said that Pakistan has been playing a facilitating role in the Afghan peace process as a shared responsibility.
To a question about Financial Action Task Force, the spokesperson said Pakistan has taken very effective actions to get itself out of the grey listhe martyred include personnel from the Pakistan Navy,” said a spokesperson from the service.
Referring to the Indian atrocities in occupied Kashmir, the spokesperson urged the international community to call upon New Delhi to halt its oppression and move towards resolution of the lingering dispute.
Responding to a question about Kartarpur Corridor, the spokesperson hoped that India would agree to a meeting with Pakistan at the earliest to finalize the draft for operationalization of the corridor.
To a question about Afghan peace process, the spokesperson said talks scheduled to be held in Doha from tomorrow is a positive development and Pakistan hopes this will lead to durable peace and stability in Afghanistan.
He said that Pakistan has been playing a facilitating role in the Afghan peace process as a shared responsibility.
To a question about Financial Action Task Force, the spokesperson said Pakistan has taken very effective actions to get itself out of the grey listhe martyred include personnel from the Pakistan Navy,” said a spokesperson from the service.
A passenger bus – travelling between Karachi and Gwadar – was stopped by around 25 unidentified attackers in the Buzi pass area near Hangol after midnight.
The terrorists – wearing Frontier Corps uniforms – checked the identity cards of the passengers before offloading and abducting the victims.
“The attackers were wearing uniforms from the paramilitary Frontier Corps,” said provincial home secretary Haider Ali while talking to AFP.
They “stopped buses on the Makran Coastal Highway and gunned down 14 people,” he said.
Two of those abducted reportedly managed to escape while 14 were shot dead and their bodies were recovered from near a local restaurant in the area.
Security forces reached the spot soon after the incident and started an initial investigation into the attack and established a cordon. Rescue teams moved the bodies of the victims to a Navy hospital in Ormara for the identification process.
Attack shows a ‘pattern’
In a statement, President Dr Arif Alvi expressed deep grief and sorrow over the loss of precious lives and said such attempts to spread mischief in the country will not succeed.
“The nation is united and committed against terrorism,” he added.
Prime Minister Imran Khan also condemned the attack and has asked for a report of the attack.
The premier has directed the authorities to make every possible effort to identify and to bring the perpetrators of the attack to justice.
He has also expressed his sympathies with the families of the victims.
Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry also condemned the incident and stated the attack, along with the recent attacks on the Hazara community and the April 16 Hayatabad gun battle, show a “pattern” and the government will continue the fight against terrorism.
He further said that the country had sacrificed many lives but the “fight is far from over”.
According to Balochistan Inspector General of Police Mohsin Hassan Butt, around 15-20 unidentified armed assailants in camouflage uniform reportedly stopped five or six buses travelling between Karachi and Gwadar.
In the Buzi Top area, between 12:30am and 1am, the gunmen stopped a bus, checked the identity cards of passengers and offloaded about 16 of them, the IGP said.
IGP Butt explained that it was a "targeted killing". The victims were identified via their CNICs and shot at close range, he said.
At least 14 were shot dead, while two passengers managed to escape the massacre and made it to the nearest Levies checkpost. They were shifted to Ormara Hospital for treatment.
Levies and other law enforcement personnel reached the spot and launched an investigation into the incident. The bodies of the victims were recovered from Noor Baksh Hotel.
The motive behind the killings and the identity of the victims are yet to be ascertained.
A similar incident took place in Balochistan's Mastung area in 2015, when armed men kidnapped about two dozen passengers from two Karachi-bound coaches and killed at least 19 of them in the mountainous area of Khad Kocha.
Within the past week, Balochistan saw a terror attack targeting the Hazara community in Quetta which left at least 20 killed, and a blast in Chaman which targeted security forces.
