Shangla: At least six people including five Chinese nationals were killed after their vehicle was attacked in Shangla’s Besham town, Malakand Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) said on Tuesday. Confirming the death toll, the DIG said that a suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden vehicle into a car carrying Chinese nationals. He said the Pakistani driver of the car was injured in the attack and was taken to a local hospital. The driver later succumbed to his injuries during treatment. A woman was among the deceased Chinese engineers, Geo News reported. The Chinese were engineers who had gone to Dasu camp in Kohistan from Islamabad, the official added. Meanwhile, a heavy contingent of security personnel reached the incident site and cordoned off the area. Security forces launched a search operation for the suspects in the area. Shahrah-e-Karakoram authorities for traffic movement between Basham and Kohistan. Taking cognizance of the incident, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad and condoled with the Chinese ambassador over the unfortunate incident. “I and the whole nation sympathize with the Chinese citizens,” he said on the occasion. Earlier, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also visited the embassy and informed the Chinese ambassador about the details of the attack and the death of the Chinese engineers. He also shared details of the ongoing rescue operation at the site of the attack. “The entire nation of Pakistan shares the grief of its Chinese brothers equally in this time of grief,” Naqvi said, pledging to deal with iron fists against the elements involved in the attack. He said that the attack on Pakistan-China brotherly relations was unacceptable. “We will not let bilateral relations be affected,” he added. Reacting to the incident, President Asif Ali Zardari strongly condemned the attack and expressed grief over the loss of life. “Anti-Pakistan forces will never succeed in damaging the Pakistan-China friendship,” Zardari was quoted as saying in a statement posted by the Pakistani president’s official Twitter account X. Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Minister Haji Gulber Khan also condemned the attack and expressed grief over the loss of life. “The attack on Chinese citizens is a conspiracy to destroy Pakistan-China friendship,” he added. Meanwhile, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari condemned the act of terrorism and the death of Chinese citizens. A statement issued by the PPP’s media cell on X, formerly Twitter, said Bilawal expressed his condolences to the Chinese government and urged the Pakistani authorities to identify and punish the perpetrators and facilitators of the attack. He also expressed solidarity with the families of the deceased. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa CM Ali Amin Gandapur, KP Governor Ghulam Ali, SIndh CM Murad Ali Shah, KP Awami National Party (ANP) President Aimal Wali Khan and Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab also condemned the attack.
