At least 5 killed, 38 injured in a bomb blast targeting police in Pakistan

A powerful blast targeting a senior police officer in Pakistan’s Balochistan province has killed at least five people and injured a further 38, six of whom are in serious condition.

Two security personnel died in the blast, which also left numerous women and children injured.

It remains unclear whether it was a suicide attack or a remote detonation, though police have established the device was on board a nearby parked motorcycle.

The apparent target was the local Station House Officer (SHO) who had been out on patrol Wednesday morning.

SHO’s condition remains critical.

“The bomb went off as soon as SHO Shaffat got down from his vehicle,” Quetta Deputy Inspector-General (DIG) of Police Abdul Razzaq Cheema said.

The banned terrorist group Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility for the blast according to local media.

It was the second bomb attack within a week in Quetta, the provincial capital; on July 23, a bomb killed four and injured 32.