QUETTA, Pakistan — A Pakistani government official says gunmen killed six paramilitary troops and wounded two in an ambush on a security convoy in the country’s southwest.

Hasil Khan, a local administrator in Awaran district of Baluchistan province, says the convoy came under an attack by gun fire and rocket-propelled grenades in the district’s Mashki area on Monday.

He says the convoy was on patrol when the attack happened and that a search is underway for the attackers.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack but the blame will likely fall on Baluch separatists fighting in the region.

Islamic militants also operate in Baluchistan province, which has been the scene of low level insurgency for over a decade. The separatists demand a larger share of provincial resources or complete autonomy from Islamabad. </s> QUETTA, Pakistan — A Pakistani official says gunmen have ambushed a bus and killed 14 passengers after forcing them off the vehicle on a highway in the country's southwest.

Local official Jehangir Dashti says it was unclear who was behind the killings before dawn Thursday.

He says about three dozen people were traveling to the southwestern port of Gawadar when gunmen stopped the bus and killed 14 people after checking their identity cards. The motive behind the killings is not known.

No one has claimed responsibility for the killings but Baluchi separatists often target security forces and people from Punjab, who tend to dominate the ranks of the military stationed in Baluchistan whom the separatists are fighting.

Separatists have waged a low-level insurgency in Baluchistan, demanding a fairer share of the province's resources. </s> QUETTA, Pakistan — Gunmen wearing Pakistani police and paramilitary uniforms ambushed a bus before dawn Thursday and killed 14 people after going through their ID cards and forcing them out on a remote part of a coastal highway in restive southwestern Baluchistan province, officials said.

Hours after the ambush, a new separatist group claimed responsibility for the killings. The attack drew nationwide condemnation and Prime Minister Imran Khan called it “an act of terror.”

Separatists in Baluchistan frequently target Pakistani security forces and also people from neighboring Punjab province. Punjabis, a different ethnic group from the Baluch, tend to dominate the ranks of the military units stationed in Baluchistan that the separatists are fighting.

The attack took place as the bus was traveling on the Makran coastal highway between the port city of Karachi and the Gwadar port in the southwest, said local official Jehangir Dashti.

Dashti said the passengers targeted in the attack were killed after the assailants checked their identity cards but he could not confirm if all the slain were Punjabis.

Security personnel also frequently use buses to travel to their jobs in Gwadar, a port built through investments and help from China.

“Dozens of gunmen” were involved in the attack and fled the scene afterward, Dashti said.

“In this tragic incident, 14 passengers were forced off the bus, they were lined up in a nearby open area and killed by the terrorists,” he said.

Security forces from the nearby town of Buzi Top were dispatched and had reached the area, about 375 miles from the provincial capital, Quetta, he added.

Little is known about the newly formed separatist Baloch Raji Aajoi Sangar group, which claimed responsibility for the attack. </s> QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Attacks in Pakistan on Monday killed six members of the country's paramilitary force and two policemen, officials said.

In southwestern Baluchistan province, gunmen ambushed a convoy of paramilitary troops and wounded two in an ambush on a security convoy in the country's southwest.

Later Monday, an attack in the country's North Waziristan region left two policemen dead.

Hasil Khan, a local administrator in Awaran district of Baluchistan, said the convoy came under an attack by gun fire and rocket-propelled grenades in the district's Mashki area. The troops were on patrol when the attack happened, Khan said, adding that a search was underway for the attackers.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack but blame will likely fall on Baluch separatists fighting in the region.

Islamic militants also operate in Baluchistan province, which has been the scene of low level insurgency for over a decade. The separatists demand a larger share of provincial resources or complete autonomy from Islamabad.

In North Waziristan, the attack that killed two policemen took place in the Boya area, according to Mohammad Ayaz Khan, the region's top government administrator.

He said a government official, Rehmat Hussain, and a policeman were also wounded in the attack.

Last month, government official Hameedullah Khan was killed in a similar attack in the same area. </s> Six members of Pakistan’s paramilitary force and two police officers have been killed in separate attacks in the country's southwest and northwest, officials say.

Two paramilitary troops were also injured on July 2 when gunmen ambushed their convoy with gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades in the southwestern province of Balochistan, said Hasil Khan, a local administrator.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack in Awaran district.

Resource-rich Balochistan, which borders Afghanistan and Iran, has been plagued by sectarian violence, Islamist militant attacks, and a separatist insurgency that has led to thousands of casualties since 2004.

In the North Waziristan tribal region, officials said a July 2 attack left two police officers dead.

A government official and a police officer were also wounded in the attack, according to Mohammad Ayaz Khan, the region's top government administrator.

Islamic militants had sanctuaries in North Waziristan until a 2014 Pakistani Army offensive, after which most militants escaped to Afghanistan. They continue to carry out sporadic attacks. </s> QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Gunmen ambushed a bus and killed 14 passengers after going through their ID cards and forcing them out on a highway in a remote area of southwestern Pakistan before dawn Thursday, officials said.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the killings. Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the attack in restive Baluchistan province, calling it "an act of terror."

Separatists in Baluchistan frequently target Pakistani security forces and also people from neighboring Punjab province. Punjabis, a different ethnic group from the Baluch, tend to dominate the ranks of the military units stationed in Baluchistan that the separatists are fighting.

The attack took place as the bus was traveling on the Makran coastal highway between the port city of Karachi and the Gwadar port in the southwest, local official Jehangir Dashti told The Associated Press. He said it was unclear who was behind the killings.

Dashti said the passengers targeted in the attack were killed after the assailants checked their identity cards but he could not confirm if all the slain were Punjabis. Security personnel also frequently use buses to travel to their jobs in Gwadar, a port built through investments and help from China.

"Dozens of gunmen" were involved in the attack and fled the scene afterward, he said.

"In this tragic incident, 14 passengers were forced off the bus, they were lined up in a nearby open area and killed by the terrorists," Dashti said.

Security forces from the nearby town of Buzi Top were dispatched and had reached the area, about 600 kilometers (375 miles) from the provincial capital, Quetta, he added.

In his statement, Prime Minister Khan ordered authorities "to make every possible effort to identify and to bring the perpetrators of the barbaric act to justice."

Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said Pakistan had rendered great sacrifices in the war on terror, which has not ended yet.

Separatists have for years waged a low-level insurgency in oil-rich Baluchistan, complaining of discrimination and demanding a fairer share of the province's resources and wealth.

Other militant groups also operate in Baluchistan. Last Friday, a suicide bomber targeted an open-air market in Quetta, killing 20 people in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group.

Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report. </s> At least 14 people were lined up and executed in southwestern Pakistan after gunmen ambushed a bus and forced the passengers onto a highway early Thursday, officials said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Prime Minister Imran Khan has condemned the attack in restive Baluchistan province as "an act of terror."

The attack took place as the bus was traveling on the Makran coastal highway between the port city of Karachi and the Gwadar port in the southwest, local official Jehangir Dashti told The Associated Press. He said that the passengers targeted in the attack were killed after the assailants checked their identity cards.

US OFFICIALS SEEK EXTRADITION OF MURDER SUSPECT IN PAKISTAN

"In this tragic incident, 14 passengers were forced off the bus, they were lined up in a nearby open area and killed by the terrorists," Dashti said. The identities of the slain were not immediately clear.

Security forces from the nearby town of Buzi Top were dispatched and had reached the area, about 375 miles from the provincial capital, Quetta, he added.

In his statement, Prime Minister Imran Khan ordered authorities "to make every possible effort to identify and to bring the perpetrators of the barbaric act to justice."

Separatists have for years waged a low-level insurgency in oil-rich Baluchistan, complaining of discrimination and demanding a fairer share of the province's resources and wealth.

Other militant groups also operate in Baluchistan. Last Friday, a suicide bomber targeted an open-air market in Quetta, killing 20 people in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. </s> QUETTA, Pakistan: Six security officials were killed in an attack in southwestern Pakistan on Friday when their convoy came under heavy firing in a mountainous area near the border with Iran.

Pakistan's restive Baluchistan province has been hit by a number of attacks on security personnel but the number of large scale incidents has decreased significantly since 2016.

The province's information minister Zahoor Ahmed Buledi told Reuters that six members of the Frontier Corps paramilitary force in charge of security in the region were killed in "heavy" firing along a mountainous stretch of road in the Kech district.

Fourteen others were wounded. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Islamist militants linked to the Taliban, al Qaeda and Islamic State have been operating in the province, which borders Iran as well as Afghanistan. It also has an indigenous ethnic Baluch insurgency fighting the central government.

Last month, three men from the separatist Baloch Liberation Army stormed the Chinese embassy in Pakistan's southern metropolis Karachi, killing four people including two policemen.

They were shot and killed by police before they could force their way in in a car packed with explosives.

Baluchistan, which has rich mineral and natural gas reserves but remains Pakistan’s poorest province, is the site of a long-running rebellion by separatists who argue the state is taking over their lands and have targeted Chinese-funded projects.

In July, a suicide bomber detonated in the middle of a crowded election rally in the province, killing 128 people including electoral candidate Siraj Raisani. Islamic State claimed responsibility for the blast. </s> Gunmen ambushed a bus and killed 14 passengers after going through their ID cards and forcing them out on a highway in a remote area of southwestern Pakistan before dawn Thursday, officials said.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the killings. Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the attack in restive Baluchistan province, calling it “an act of terror.” Separatists in Baluchistan frequently target Pakistani security forces and also people from neighboring Punjab province.

The attack took place as the bus was traveling on the Makran coastal highway between the port city of Karachi and the Gwadar port in the southwest, local official Jehangir Dashti told The Associated Press. He said it was unclear who was behind the killings.

Dashti said the passengers targeted in the attack were killed after the assailants checked their identity cards but he could not confirm if all the slain were Punjabis. Security personnel also frequently use buses to travel to their jobs in Gwadar, a port built through investments and help from China.

“Dozens of gunmen” were involved in the attack and fled the scene afterward, he said. “In this tragic incident, 14 passengers were forced off the bus, they were lined up in a nearby open area and killed by the terrorists,” Dashti said.

Security forces from the nearby town of Buzi Top were dispatched and had reached the area, about 600 kilometers from the provincial capital, Quetta, he added.

In his statement, Prime Minister Khan ordered authorities “to make every possible effort to identify and to bring the perpetrators of the barbaric act to justice.”

Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said Pakistan had rendered great sacrifices in the war on terror, which has not ended yet.

Other militant groups also operate in Baluchistan. Last Friday, a suicide bomber targeted an open-air market in Quetta, killing 20 people in an attack claimed by ISIS.
Militants ambush a paramilitary convoy in Awaran, Baluchistan, Pakistan and kill six people.