<\/p>\n
Five Chinese nationals and one Pakistani were killed in an attack on their convoy in Bisham tehsil of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa\u2019s Shangla, according to the regional police chief and a station house officer (SHO).<\/p>\n
Reuters<\/em> quoted Mohammad Ali Gandapur, the regional police chief, as saying that a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a convoy of Chinese engineers which was on its way from Islamabad to their camp in Dasu.<\/p>\n \u201cFive Chinese nationals and their Pakistani driver were killed in the attack,\u201d Gandapur said.<\/p>\n The provincial police had reached the spot and started relief operations. The rest of the people in the convoy have been protected, Gandapur said.<\/p>\n Bisham SHO Bakht Zahir, while talking to Dawn.com<\/em>, also confirmed that the incident claimed six lives, of which five were Chinese engineers and one was a Pakistani.<\/p>\n He said it was a \u201csuicide blast\u201d and the authorities concerned were collecting evidence. Security arrangements were tightened at the spot and the bodies were being shifted to a hospital, he further said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will investigate from where and how the vehicle of a suicide bomber came and how it happened,\u201d the SHO said.<\/p>\n Rescue 1122 station head Sheraz Khan said that the bodies were being shifted to the Bisham Tehsil Headquarters Hospital.<\/p>\n The rescue official said that after the blast, the vehicle with the Chinese passengers fell into a gorge and caught fire. A rescue team then reached the spot and put out the fire, he added.<\/p>\n In July 2021, 13 people, including nine Chinese nationals, were killed<\/a> when a coach carrying them to an under-construction tunnel site of the 4,300-megawatt Dasu hydropower project fell into a ravine in the Upper Kohistan area after an explosion.<\/p>\n Although the Foreign Office had initially termed the incident an accident, the government later said<\/a> traces of explosives had been found, with the information minister at the time saying \u201cterrorism could not be ruled out\u201d.<\/p>\n In November 2022, an anti-terrorism court in Hazara awarded<\/a> the death sentence to two men after convicting them for planning the attack.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, China\u2019s embassy demanded investigations into an attack.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Chinese embassy and consulates in Pakistan have immediately launched emergency work, demanding that the Pakistani side conduct a thorough investigation into the attack, severely punish the perpetrators and take practical and effective measures to protect the safety of Chinese citizens,\u201d the embassy said in a statement.<\/p>\n President Asif Ali Zardari strongly condemned the attack and expressed \u201cdeep grief\u201d over the deaths of the Chinese nationals.<\/p>\n In a statement<\/a> issued by the Presidency, he conveyed his condolences to the families of the Chinese nationals and the neighbouring government.<\/p>\n \u201cAnti-Pakistan elements will never succeed in damaging Pak-China friendship,\u201d President Zardari asserted.<\/p>\n Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also condemned the \u201csuicide attack\u201d, expressing \u201cheartfelt condolences\u201d to the bereaved families.<\/p>\n In a statement<\/a>, he said, \u201cWe stand with the Chinese government and the families of the citizens killed in this hour of grief.<\/p>\n \u201cEnemies have targeted the citizens of Pakistan\u2019s extremely trusted friendly country. This was not an attack on Chinese citizens but also on Pakistan,\u201d the minister added.<\/p>\n \u201cThe enemy will be given a strong response to this attack,\u201d Naqvi vowed.<\/p>\n Condemning the attack, Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti said terrorists wanted to \u201cdamage the fraternal relations of Pakistan and China through their heinous actions, which we won\u2019t allow to happen\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cPakistan will do everything possible to deal with the masterminds and the enablers of this act with iron hands,\u201d he said in a post<\/a> on X.<\/p>\n National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq and Deputy Speaker Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah also condemned the incident and expressed their grief on it.<\/p>\n In a statement issued by the NA secretariat, Sadiq said, \u201cMaking Chinese nationals a target of terrorism is a heinous plot. Terrorists are targeting innocent citizens for their nefarious aims.\u201d<\/p>\n Stating that China was Pakistan\u2019s \u201cloyal and trusted friend\u201d, the NA speaker asserted that the attack on Chinese nationals was \u201cintolerable\u201d.<\/p>\n Sadiq and Shah said that the Parliament and the public expressed their solidarity with the bereaved families. \u201cLaw enforcement agencies should bring the inciteful elements involved in this terrorism to justice,\u201d the statement quoted them as saying.<\/p>\n Privatisation Minister Abdul Aleem Khan said the attack was \u201cincredibly upsetting and condemnable\u201d.<\/p>\n In a post<\/a> on X, he said, \u201cThe enemy is targeting Pak-China friendship and China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) under a well-thought conspiracy but the nation, along with the Pakistan Army, will thwart all evil plots.\u201d<\/p>\n Former caretaker premier Anwaarul Haq Kakar conveyed his \u201cheartfelt condolences\u201d to the victims\u2019 families.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will spare no effort in bringing the perpetrators to justice. Together, we will overcome this challenge and uphold our strong bonds of friendship and cooperation,\u201d he said in a post<\/a> on X.<\/p>\n Former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari condemned the attack and expressed his grief on the deaths of Chinese nationals.<\/p>\nChina demands investigation of attack<\/h2>\n
Condemnations<\/h2>\n