A suicide bombing targeting a military-run school bus in Pakistan’s volatile Balochistan province has killed at least five people, including three children, the country’s military confirmed on Wednesday.
The attack, which occurred in the Khuzdar district, left several others injured and has been blamed on “Indian terror proxies” by Pakistani authorities—a claim made without presenting supporting evidence.
According to district administrator Yasir Iqbal, the bus was carrying around 40 students to an army-run school when the bomber struck. Swiftly following the attack, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the military condemned the violence and accused Indian-backed militants of orchestrating the bombing. India has yet to respond to the accusation.
The incident comes amid heightened tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals, who agreed to a tenuous ceasefire on May 10 following their most intense military exchange in decades. The truce remains fragile, with both sides routinely accusing each other of backing insurgent activities—allegations both deny.
No group has claimed responsibility for Wednesday’s bombing. However, the attack bears chilling similarities to Pakistan’s 2014 school massacre in Peshawar, where over 130 children were killed by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an ultra-radical Islamist group.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least populated province, has long been plagued by insurgency. In recent years, separatist violence has surged, with the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claiming a number of deadly attacks, including a March assault on a train that left 31 people dead.
Wednesday’s attack has reignited fears about security in the restive province, which is home to major mining operations and vital infrastructure projects but remains marred by long-standing political and ethnic grievances.
Melissa Enoch
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