Kamikaze militant leaves four dead in bombing of Chinese investment institute in Pakistan (photos)

The Baloch Liberation Army, a separatist militant group that claims independence for Pakistan’s largest region, claimed responsibility for the attack. They said this was the first suicide attack by a female militant.

This is not the first time that Chinese targets have been hit by separatists in the Balochistan region, where Beijing is engaging in large-scale infrastructure projects as part of its Asian-European international “Belt and Road” initiative.

The separatists have long opposed major energy and mining projects in the region, saying their advantages are coming out of the country.

“Baloch Liberation Army accepts responsibility for today’s self-sacrificing attack,” group spokesman Jeeyand Baloch said in a statement on social media.

Karachi police confirmed that four people had died in the attack, including the local driver of the vehicle and three Chinese staff members of the Confucius Institute, the cultural and educational program that China operates at various universities to spread its culture around the world.

Security camera footage released by the media shows a woman standing near the gate of the institute inside Karachi University as the minibus approaches. When she is near, she turns her back on the vehicle and detonates the bomb on her body.

Pakistan’s new Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif immediately condemned the attack. “I am saddened to learn of the loss of life, including of our Chinese friends in the devilish attack on Karachi today,” he wrote.

In February, Baloch separatists staged two days of attacks in their province where nine Pakistani soldiers were killed.

Tensions have risen in recent years in the Balochistan region from the influx of large Chinese investments.

China is upgrading the country’s energy and infrastructure systems on a $ 54 billion project known as the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, but both countries are aware of security risks.

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