The tragic death toll of children from the brutal terrorist attack on a school bus in Khuzdar has risen to six, after two critically injured children succumbed to their wounds, security officials confirmed on Friday.
The assault, allegedly carried out by Indian-backed terrorists associated with Fitna-ul-Hindustan, claimed the lives of five female students and one male student.
According to security sources, Malaika and Haider, two students who were critically injured in the attack, embraced martyrdom during treatment. The identities of the other martyred children have not yet been released, pending notification of their families.
Officials described the incident as a cowardly act orchestrated by elements sponsored by India to destabilize peace in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “After facing diplomatic and strategic setbacks, India is now resorting to using its proxies to commit atrocities against innocent civilians, especially children,” a senior security source said.
Also Read: Khuzdar school bus attack: Death toll rises to 6 as another student martyred
“The blood of these innocent children will not go in vain. The perpetrators behind this barbaric act, along with their foreign sponsors, will be held accountable,” the source said.
A day earlier, Sahar Saleem, an eighth-grade student who was critically injured in the blast, had died despite medical efforts.
On May 21, five people, including three schoolchildren, were martyred and several others were injured when a suicide bomber targeted a school bus near Zero Point on the Karachi-Quetta National Highway in Khuzdar.
According to local authorities, the blast occurred when a school bus carrying children passed by a vehicle rigged with explosives parked along the roadside. The incident took place around the busy Zero Point area, a key junction on the national highway.
Also Read: 3 children among 5 martyred in Khuzdar school bus bombing
“The explosive material was planted in a vehicle on the roadside. As the school bus approached, it was detonated remotely,” a senior police official said.
The UN Security Council on Thursday strongly condemned the “heinous and cowardly” terrorist attack on a school bus in Khuzdar in Pakistan’s province of Balochistan, and called for bringing the culprits to justice.
“This reprehensible act of terrorism resulted in the grievous loss of at least 6 Pakistani nationals, including 4 school-going children, along with 53 injured, 39 of them children,” a press statement issued by the 15-member Council said.
“The members of the Security Council expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government and the people of Pakistan, and they wished a speedy and full recovery to those who were injured.”
