Karachi: At least 21 people were killed and 50 others injured in a suicide bombing at a crowded market in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province on Friday, in an attack believed to be targeting the Shia Hazara ethnic minority community. Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the attack and ordered an inquiry. The explosion at 7.35am took place in the busy wholesale market area of Hazarganj in Quetta where Hazaras and other traders come daily to buy fruits and vegetables to later sell at shops in other parts of the city.
Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Abdul Razzaq Cheema said the blast, which occurred when the vegetable and fruit sacks were being loaded onto trucks by the traders, targeted the Hazara ethnic community. However, Home Minister Ziaullah Langove, in a press conference, said the blast was not targeting “a specific community”. “Our guess is no specific community was targeted. Marri Baloch and Frontier Corps (FC) personnel were among those killed as well. The numbers of the Hazara community were just greater,” Langove said.
