11 Shia Hazara miners shot dead in Balochistan

No one has yet claimed responsibility for the incident, but the banned militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi has been involved in similar sorts of incidents in Balochistan before.

11 Shia Hazara miners shot dead in Balochistan
Photot Credit: DW TV

Balochistan: According to AFP, the victims belonged to the Shia Hazara community. The bodies of the 11 dead miners have been shifted to a local hospital, according to Khalid Durrani, a local government official. The gunmen fled after the incident and are now being sought by police and security forces.

Miners were kidnapped and shot dead when Gunmen opened fire in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan, killing 11 miners. This was stated by the local authorities.


‘Inhuman cowardly terrorism’ Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in a tweet called the killing of 11 miners in Machh another incident of “inhuman cowardly terrorism”.

According to Moazzam Ali Jatoi, an official of the paramilitary levy force, the attack took place near Machh, a coal mining area. Machh is located 48km east of the provincial capital Quetta in Balochistan. According to Jatoi, the gunmen kidnapped and took the miners to nearby hills where they were fired upon. He said six miners were killed on the spot while five others who were critically injured died on the way to hospital.

11 Shia Hazara miners shot dead in Balochistan
Photot Credit: DW TV

Ali Jatoi told the Associated Press that a preliminary investigation had revealed that the gunmen had identified the Shia Hazaras and taken them away, but had not harmed the rest.

No one has yet claimed responsibility for the incident, but the banned militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi has been involved in similar sorts of incidents in Balochistan before. 

In Balochistan, separatists and like movements have targeted security forces and officials as well as non-local workers, but there is no example of them targeting the Shia Hazara community.

Source: AFP 

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