Quetta police station comes under grenade attack

QUETTA: A police station in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, came under attack on Saturday, with initial reports suggesting it was a grenade attack, according to the police.

Senior Superintendent of Police (Operations) Zohaib Mohsin said unidentified motorcyclists attacked the Civil Lines police station with a hand grenade, which was thrown near the gate of the facility. One police personnel was injured in the ensuing explosion, Dawn reported.

The wounded policeman, identified as Saboor Achakzai, was taken to Civil Hospital’s trauma centre. The police and other law enforcement agencies, meanwhile, combed the crime scene for evidence, the report said.

The SSP added that nearby routes have been blocked and a search for the attackers is under way.

In a statement, Babar Yousafzai, a spokesperson for Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo, said the CM has reached out to SSP Mohsin who briefed him about the incident.

He said the best medical facilities will be provided to the injured policeman.

Terrorists deserve no mercy, he said.

The police in the city have been targeted by terrorists of late. In April, separate blasts had left four police personnel dead and nearly two-dozen wounded.

In May, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) emir Sirajul Haq narrowly escaped a suicide attack which the police had said targeted his convoy in Balochistan’s Zhob, leaving six people injured, Dawn reported.

That same month, a police officer was killed during a raid in Balochistan’s Sohbatpur district.