At least 25 people have been killed and over 40 wounded in a bombing at a railway station in Quetta, the capital of Pakistan’s Balochistan province, police report. The explosion occurred early Saturday morning as around 100 passengers awaited a train bound for Peshawar. Among the casualties were 14 soldiers, along with five civilians and six railway employees, according to Senior Superintendent of Police Muhammad Baloch.
The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility, stating the bombing was a targeted attack on military personnel. Balochistan, a resource-rich but impoverished region bordering Afghanistan and Iran, has a history of violence due to separatist insurgencies, with groups like the BLA seeking independence and alleging exploitation of the province’s resources by the central government.
Footage from the scene showed debris and personal items scattered across the platform, with significant structural damage visible in the blast’s aftermath. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack, pledging that the perpetrators would face severe consequences and reaffirming the government’s resolve to combat terrorism.
Analyst Imtiaz Gul from the Center for Research and Security Studies suggested the bombing could be linked to resistance against the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), specifically its port infrastructure in Gwadar. The BLA and other armed groups have previously opposed the CPEC, viewing it as a tool for economic and strategic control by foreign interests.
