SIBI: At least four soldiers of the Frontier Corps (FC) were martyred and six were seriously injured when an improvised explosive device (IED) exploded near a security forces’ convoy in the area of Sangan in Sibi, Balochistan.
According to security sources, soon after the incident, security forces cordoned off the area and rescue services shifted the bodies of the deceased and the injured to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) via an air ambulance.
“The condition of the six injured FC soldiers is said to be critical,” a security official said.
On March 8, at least seven security personnel were martyred in an explosion in Sibi, several minutes after President Arif Alvi addressed a colourful concluding ceremony of the Sibi Mela at a venue close by, police said.
The martyrs were members of the paramilitary FC. “The explosion happened some 25 minutes after the president left the area,” said a police official, adding that initial investigations suggested it was a suicide attack.
Officials said the latest assault happened less than 800 metres from where Alvi attended a function earlier in the day. Hashim Ghilzai, a senior administration official from Balochistan, confirmed the death toll. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility, saying one of its fighters detonated an explosive belt.
Balochistan Chief Minister Quddus Bizenjo strongly condemned the blast, saying that it was an attempt to sabotage the annual festival and overall peace in the province, according to a media report. He vowed to thwart “all conspiracies against the province”.
