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Pakistan attack targeting Chinese adds to concern over security threats

  • Suicide bombing on Friday was aimed at a convoy of Chinese engineers in the country’s southwest
  • Analyst says situation is now ‘clearly worse’ for workers on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor projects

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A damaged vehicle is seen at the site of the blast in Gwadar. The Balochistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack. Photo: Xinhua
A deadly suicide bombing targeting Chinese engineers in Pakistan last week has added to concern in Beijing over a worsening security situation in the region.
Two Pakistani children were killed and a Chinese national was one of a number of people injured in the attack on a convoy of vehicles in the Gwadar area of southwest Pakistan on Friday.

The Balochistan Liberation Army, a separatist militant organisation, has claimed responsibility for the attack.

China’s embassy in Islamabad called for an investigation and warned Chinese nationals to avoid public places, and again urged Pakistan to do more on counterterrorism cooperation and security measures.

It comes after a bus blast in Pakistan last month killed 13 people, including nine Chinese nationals involved in a hydropower project at Dasu. China said it was the biggest attack on Chinese working on its overseas investments in recent years, and Pakistan last week blamed Indian and Afghan intelligence agencies.
Beijing has long been concerned about security in Pakistan, where it has invested billions of dollars and where thousands of Chinese workers are involved in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) – including the Gwadar port development – a key project under its belt and road infrastructure scheme.
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