A powerful explosion followed by gunfire targeted a government-organized rally in Quetta on Wednesday, killing one person and injuring at least ten others.
Police said the rally was traveling from Sariab Customs towards the city when it came under attack near Munir Mengal Road. Armed assailants reportedly threw a grenade and opened fire on participants. Security forces quickly cordoned off the area.
The injured were taken to Civil Hospital Quetta and Bolan Medical Complex. One of the participants, identified as Mehboob Ali, later died during treatment at the hospital’s trauma centre.
The rally, titled “Jashn-e-Pakistan,” was led by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) MPA Ali Madad Jatak and attended by Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti. The chief minister had left the venue after delivering his speech, reportedly due to security concerns.
According to Dr Waseem Baig, spokesperson for the Balochistan Health Department, ten people were injured in the attack. The victims included men aged between their twenties and fifties, with injuries ranging from shrapnel wounds to gunshots.
The Counter-Terrorism Department and Quetta police have launched an investigation.
Chief Minister Bugti and Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind condemned the incident and called for enhanced security across the region.
Earlier in the day, Quetta city was placed under heavy security ahead of the rally. Authorities sealed off major roads using shipping containers at Balochistan Bridge, Zarghoon Road, Imdad Chowk, and Secretariat Chowk.
The traffic restrictions caused widespread disruption, with residents reporting delays and detours across the city.
BLA Claims Responsibility
Meanwhile, on Wednesday evening, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the attack.
In a media statement, the group said its fighters had targeted what it described as “so-called victory celebrations” organized under the “patronage of the occupying Pakistani army.”
The BLA said the rally was led by MPA Ali Madad Jatak and claimed its fighters had “targeted armed death squad agents ahead of the rally.” It added: “As a result of the attack, one death squad agent was eliminated and 12 were injured.”
The group accused the provincial government of attempting to create a false sense of normalcy under military protection.
“The so-called Balochistan government, out of fear, tried to throw dust in the eyes of the world by installing containers all over Quetta and celebrating a ‘so-called celebration’ under the patronage of the occupying state,” the statement read.
“But today, the truth has become clear to the world — that the Baloch liberation movement has taken a strong shape with public support, where the occupying army does not consider itself safe in any corner of Balochistan.”
The BLA also claimed responsibility for a separate grenade attack on Tuesday night, targeting a Pakistani military checkpoint at MCC Cross in Mastung. It said four soldiers were injured in that incident.
“Our attacks on the occupying Pakistani army and its collaborators will continue,” the group said.