5 suspected bombers killed in southwest Pakistan

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) - Five suspected suicide bombers were killed when they allegedly tried to bomb a security installation in southwestern Quetta city on Thursday evening, according to the army.

The military’s media wing -- the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) -- said in a statement the suspected attackers were killed in an alleged exchange of fire when an explosives-laden vehicle tried to enter a security center in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province.

The alleged attackers “apparently” looked Afghan nationals, the statement added.

The foiled attack came following the killing of a key leader of a hardline militant group, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), during an operation in Quetta on Wednesday night.

Balochistan province has been beset by violence for over six decades, with Baloch separatists claiming it was forcibly incorporated into Pakistan upon the end of the British rule in 1947.

The mineral-rich province, especially its capital Quetta, has also been reeling from sectarian violence for last two decades, which has claimed over 2000 lives, mostly Shia minority.