Blasts Rip Through a school bus in Balochistan, five people were killed, including children.
A morning school run in Pakistan’s most dangerous province ended in misery.
Important Events
In Pakistan’s troubled Balochistan region, a terrible bomb blast hit a school bus full of kids early Tuesday morning, killing at least five people, three of them were children, and injuring dozens more.
The explosion happened around 7:40 AM local time, just outside the town of Khuzdar, as the bus was traveling a well-known route with more than 40 students on board. Witnesses said they heard a loud explosion, followed by cries, smoke, and fire. Pictures posted on social media show the burned-out car’s skeleton, with school bags and notebooks strewn over the ground.
Officials said it looks like the explosion was prepared ahead of time and aimed at a specific target. No one has taken responsibility yet, but separatist militants who have been active in the area for years are the most likely suspects.
What Is Going On
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least developed province, has been a hotbed of insurgency for a long time. Armed groups often fight with state authorities. These groups mostly want independence or more freedom for ethnic Baloch people.
The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) is one among these groups. In March, they attacked a train and killed 25 people, including soldiers and civilians. Pakistan, the U.S., and the U.K. all say the BLA is a terrorist group, but the group denies recent assertions that it gets help from other countries.
The most recent incident comes after tensions in the area have risen. Pakistan and India just came out of a two-week escalation that started after tourists were attacked in Indian-administered Kashmir. India blamed the attack on militants headquartered in Pakistan. The war may have caused tensions in Balochistan to flare up again.
Responses from the Ground
In Khuzdar’s small hospitals, there was a lot of confusion as injured youngsters were brought in quickly, some of them burned and others unconscious. Parents searched the wards in a panic for their kids, holding onto uniforms and waiting for news.
Mohsin Naqvi, the Minister of the Interior, branded the bomb a “cowardly act of barbarism” and blamed “those who attack children to weaken the nation.” Military leaders made a rare direct accusation, saying that India and “its proxies” were making Pakistan’s internal security less stable. India has not publicly commented, and there is no solid proof to back up the assertion.
Activists in Balochistan, on the other hand, say that violence is a cycle with several levels, pointing to both separatist organizations and alleged atrocities by state security personnel. Thousands of Baloch families say their loved ones have gone missing over the years, and there hasn’t been much responsibility or justice.
What’s Next?
Roadblocks, aerial monitoring, and checkpoints are currently in place in Khuzdar and adjacent areas to improve security across the region. Investigators are looking at pieces of the bomb and phone data to find out who did it.
Still, a lot of people are afraid that the worst is yet to come. The incident was not only a failure of security, but also a national tragedy that could make ethnic divisions even worse. It happened in a place where kids are no longer safe on their walk to school and justice seems out of reach.
Last Word
A school bus should never be a place to fight. But in Balochistan, where innocence meets insurgency, even a short commute to school in the morning might turn into a nightmare. The country is in mourning, but for families who have lost loved ones and a whole generation caught in the crossfire, words may not be enough.
