Pakistan Blames India for School Bus Attack Killing Three Children
Pakistan has accused India of orchestrating a suspected suicide attack on a school bus in its Balochistan province, which killed three children and left dozens injured. The incident, which occurred on Wednesday morning, took place as the bus was en route to the army public school in Khuzdar, a city in the region.
Local officials reported that an attacker drove a vehicle into the bus and detonated explosives, resulting in the deaths of three children, the bus driver, and a security guard. Dozens of children were critically injured in the attack. Initial investigations suggest the incident was a suicide bombing.
The children who lost their lives were identified as 12-year-old Hifsa Kausar, 16-year-old Esha Saleem, and 12-year-old Sania Somroo. The attack has drawn widespread condemnation from Pakistani officials, who have accused India of using proxy militant groups to carry out such violence.
India’s foreign ministry has denied the allegations, calling them baseless. The accusation comes amid heightened tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, which have been on the brink of conflict for months. Earlier this month, the countries came dangerously close to war after a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, which killed 26 people. The Indian government accused Pakistan of backing the attackers, leading to a brief but intense exchange of missile strikes.
Following the ceasefire, the Indian government stated that any future attacks on its territory would be considered an act of war. Pakistan has repeatedly denied involvement in the Kashmir attack but has accused India of using proxy groups to destabilize the region. This includes recent incidents in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where militant groups like the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) have carried out attacks.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif echoed the military’s stance, stating that the attack was evidence of India’s hostility toward Pakistan. A Balochistan government official, Shahid Rind, called the incident the “hideous face of Indian state-sponsored terrorism.”
The attack is reminiscent of a similar incident in 2013, when the TTP struck an army public school in Peshawar, killing over 130 children. That attack remains one of the deadliest on children in Pakistan’s history.
The ongoing conflict between India and Pakistan continues to cast a long shadow over regional stability, with both nations vowing to hold each other accountable for acts of violence. The recent school bus attack underscores the deep-rooted tensions and the human cost of the conflict.