On Wednesday, a suicide car bomber targeted a school bus in Pakistan, resulting in the deaths of five individuals, including at least three children, and injuring 38 others, according to officials.
This incident is the latest in a series of attacks in Balochistan province, which has been embroiled in a prolonged insurgency. Various separatist groups have conducted attacks, including the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which the U.S. labeled as a terrorist organization in 2019.
According to local deputy commissioner Yasir Iqbal, the attack took place on Wednesday on the outskirts of the city of Khuduzar while the bus was transporting children to their military-run school in the area.
Troops quickly arrived at the scene and cordoned off the area as ambulances rushed the victims to hospitals.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chairs the meeting of the National Security Committee, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP)
The military claimed the bombing was “yet another cowardly and ghastly attack” allegedly planned by neighboring India and carried out by “its proxies in Balochistan.”
Most of the attacks in the province are claimed by the BLA, which Pakistan alleges has the back of India. However, India has denied the allegations.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed his condolences and also attributed the attack to India without providing evidence.
“The attack on a school bus by terrorists backed by India is clear proof of their hostility toward education in Balochistan,” Sharif said, saying that the government would bring the perpetrators to justice.
This is a locator map for Pakistan with its capital, Islamabad, and the Kashmir region. (AP)
Pakistani officials regularly accuse India of violence in their country. The accusations have intensified amid heightened tensions between the two countries during a cross-border escalation since last month over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir. Both countries rule part of Kashmir but claim full control.
The escalation prompted fears of a broader war, and the BLA during this time appealed to India for support, although India has not commented on the appeal.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
