Suicide Bombing Near Quetta Railway Track Kills at Least 23

A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden vehicle near a railway track in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta on Sunday, killing at least 23 people and wounding more than 70 others, officials said. The force of the blast overturned two train cars and set them on fire, sending thick black smoke into the air, according to video footage shared online.

The attack occurred in an area where security forces are usually stationed and damaged several nearby buildings while smashing more than a dozen parked vehicles.

Doctors at local hospitals said they received the wounded, with 20 people listed in critical condition. Three security officials told the Associated Press that bodies were transported to hospitals; the officials spoke on condition of anonymity. Rescue teams cordoned off the site while bomb disposal units examined the scene.

An emergency was declared at Quetta hospitals, and an investigation was launched.

The outlawed Baloch Liberation Army, which seeks independence from Pakistan’s central government, claimed responsibility in a statement sent to reporters. The group said it had targeted a train carrying security personnel. Quetta is the capital of Balochistan province, an oil- and mineral-rich region that has experienced a long-running low-level insurgency.

Insurgents have repeatedly attacked security forces, government sites, and civilians.

“We strongly condemn the targeting of innocent civilians and are deeply saddened by the loss of precious human lives. ” — Shahid Rind, Balochistan provincial government spokesman Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called the attack a “cowardly act of terrorism” on social media and offered condolences to victims’ families.

” President Asif Ali Zardari denounced the bombing, saying militants and their backers sought to undermine Pakistan’s role in regional and international peace efforts. ” The attack came a day after Pakistan said the United States and Iran were close to reaching a memorandum of understanding to end the war that began Feb.

28. Violence in Balochistan has continued despite official claims that the insurgency has been quelled; at least 26 people were killed in a similar train-station bombing in the province in 2024.