Explosion near Pakistan's Karachi airport leaves two Chinese nationals dead - VIDEO

Two Chinese nationals have been killed and at least ten people injured after an explosion near Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan.

The Chinese embassy in Pakistan said there were "some local casualties" in what it described as a "terrorist attack", though the overall death toll is still unclear, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

The embassy added that the explosion targeted a convoy of Chinese engineers working on a power project in the country's Sindh province.

The separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which has in recent years carried out attacks on Chinese nationals involved in projects, has claimed responsibility for the attack.

An explosion occurred near #jinnahinternationalairport in the #Pakistani city of #Karachi, and several cars caught fire.

At least two people were killed and 10 others were injured, Geo TV reported, citing Sindh Interior Minister Zia Lanjar. pic.twitter.com/lDsAtB6Q9L

— News.Az (@news_az) October 7, 2024

In a statement released on Monday, the militant group said it had "targeted a high-level convoy of Chinese engineers and investors" arriving from Karachi airport.

A later statement from the group said it was a suicide attack, and named the perpetrator as Shah Fahad, part of a BLA suicide squad called Majeed Brigade.
It was carried out using a "vehicle-borne improvised explosive device", Reuters quoted the BLA as saying.
The explosion happened around 23:00 local time (17:00 GMT) on Sunday.

The Chinese embassy said that the engineers were part of the Chinese-funded enterprise Port Qasim Power Generation Co Ltd, which aims to build two coal power plants at Port Qasim, near Karachi.

News.Az