Four people were killed and 12 injured in an explosion in the parking lot of a hotel in Quetta city in Pakistan’s Balochistan province on Wednesday, Dawn reported. A police officer was among those killed in the blast.
Nong Rong, the Chinese ambassador to Pakistan, was staying at the Serena hotel but was not there when the explosion took place, Reuters reported, quoting Pakistan Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad. It is not clear yet if the ambassador and his delegation were the targets of the bombing.
Balochistan provincial Home Minister Ziaullah Lango said the ambassador was fine.
Deputy Inspector General Azhar Ikram told Dawn that the explosive device was fitted in a vehicle. The Counter-Terrorism Department is investigating the blast.
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan has claimed responsibility for the explosion, according to Reuters. The militant group said the explosion was a “suicide attack which was carried out by a TTP bomber via car”, according to CNN.
Balochistan government Spokesperson Liaquat Shahwani said terrorists wanted to disrupt peace in the state, the AP reported. “Those who don’t want to see progress and prosperity in the Baluchistan province are responsible for this act of terrorism,” he added.
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