On March 26, a suicide bomber attacked a convoy of Chinese engineers working on a dam project in northwestern Pakistan, killing six people.
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| The scene of the suicide bombing targeting Chinese engineers in Pakistan on March 26. (Source: AFP) |
Peshawar police chief Mohammad Ali Gandapur said the incident occurred when the Chinese engineers were on their way from Islamabad to work at the dam construction site in Dasu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Five Chinese nationals and one Pakistani were killed in the bombing, the third major attack on Chinese interests in the South Asian country in the past week, including one on an air base and another on a strategic port in Balochistan province, where Beijing has invested billions of dollars.
No individual or organization has yet claimed responsibility. Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar condemned the incident and said the country would continue its fight against the militants.
The attacks came a week before Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was scheduled to travel to Beijing, his first visit since taking office following elections in February, a source in the Prime Minister's Office said.
After the incident, Reuters reported, Chinese diplomatic missions in Pakistan immediately launched emergency rescue work and asked Islamabad to "thoroughly investigate, severely punish the perpetrators, and implement practical measures" to ensure security.
Meanwhile, on March 27, Xinhua quoted a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying that Beijing strongly condemned the terrorist attack and asked Pakistan to thoroughly investigate the incident as soon as possible.
"We demand that Pakistan take effective measures to ensure the safety and security of Chinese citizens, projects and organizations in the country. Beijing is making every effort to cooperate with Islamabad in the follow-up," the spokesman said.
The official noted that China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic cooperative partners with a strong friendship, and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has made great contributions to Pakistan's socio-economic development.
Asserting that any attempt to undermine this bilateral cooperation would never succeed, Beijing said it would firmly support Islamabad in the fight against terrorism.
Pakistan has frequent insurgencies by Muslims and other minorities seeking secession.
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