A car bomb exploded outside a paramilitary force headquarters in Pakistan’s volatile Balochistan province on Tuesday, killing at least 10 people. This devastating attack marks the latest surge in violence across a region embroiled in a fierce conflict between national security forces and a determined separatist insurgency, local officials reported.
The powerful explosion, which also left over two dozen individuals wounded, plunged Quetta—the bustling capital of this vast southwestern province—into chaos. Eyewitnesses and CCTV footage captured thick plumes of smoke rising dramatically into the sky, creating widespread panic throughout the city center.
Provincial health minister Bakht Muhammad Kakar confirmed the fatalities, stating that eight civilians and two paramilitary officers lost their lives. An injury list reviewed by The New York Times indicated that at least 26 wounded individuals were rushed to hospitals. In the aftermath of the explosion, Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti, Balochistan’s top civilian official, reported that security forces also engaged and killed four militants in a subsequent shootout.
By Tuesday afternoon in Pakistan, no specific group had officially taken responsibility for the attack. Historically, both separatist factions and Islamist militant groups have frequently targeted government buildings and security personnel within Quetta, a major urban center home to over 1.5 million residents.
“While the attack’s method isn’t new, it starkly highlights the ability of militants to strike at the very core of a major Pakistani city,” commented Ifthikar Firdous, a security expert and co-founder of the Khorasan Diary, an Islamabad-based research publication focusing on regional security.
Residents described scenes of terror and pandemonium in Quetta’s city center, an area housing vital institutions like banks, national television offices, and the provincial parliament. Security forces swiftly sealed off the explosion site, restricting access for both journalists and the public. Ambulances rapidly transported the injured to hospitals, where anxious families gathered outside emergency rooms, desperately awaiting updates on their loved ones.
“The blast was so immense, I genuinely believed it had occurred right on our street,” recalled Feroz Baraich, a local trader living approximately 10 miles from the epicenter.
Balochistan, a province sharing borders with Afghanistan and Iran, has historically been plagued by severe violence. Despite its rich natural resources, including gas, gold, and copper, the region remains a hotspot for instability. Its extensive coastline along the Arabian Sea also makes it a crucial transit point for the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, part of Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, featuring a deep-sea port developed by China in recent years.
Groups like the Baloch Liberation Army (B.L.A.) have relentlessly advocated for the province’s secession and greater local authority over its abundant natural wealth. Notably, in March, the B.L.A. seized control of a train transporting over 400 passengers for more than 36 hours, an act considered one of Pakistan’s most daring assaults in years. This summer, the Baloch Liberation Army was officially designated a terrorist group by the Trump administration.
Separately, the Pakistani Taliban has emerged as a significant security threat in recent years. This group has primarily focused its attacks on security forces, compelling the Pakistani military to initiate a large-scale operation in the adjacent province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.