Pakistani militants attack highway vehicles, killing 23

QUETTA: A militant attack on a highway in southwest Pakistan killed vehicles ranging from buses to trucks, officials said Monday, killing at least 23 people and setting fire to 10 vehicles.

Gunmen blocked the route in the restive Balochistan province on Sunday night, pulling passengers from vehicles and shooting them after checking their identity cards, Ayub Achakzai, a senior police superintendent, told Reuters.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said in a statement that 23 people had been killed, while Achakzai had put the death toll at 22.

“The gunmen not only killed passengers but also coal truck drivers,” said Hameed Zahir, deputy commissioner of the area where the incident occurred.

At least 10 trucks were set on fire after their drivers were killed, he added.

Militants waging a decades-old ethnic insurgency demanding the secession of resource-rich Balochistan from Pakistan are targeting workers from the eastern Punjab province who they say are exploiting their resources.

The Balochistan Liberation Army said in a statement that its fighters had deliberately attacked military personnel travelling in civilian clothes and shot them after identifying them.

However, the Pakistani Interior Ministry said the dead were innocent citizens.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's office condemned the attack in a statement and announced that security forces would retaliate and bring those responsible to justice.