Zhob explosion leaves one dead, 10 others wounded

QUETTA: The police said on Wednesday that at least one person has been killed and 10 others wounded in an explosion in Sabakzai area in Balochistan's Zhob.

The injured were being shifted to the hospital and measures were underway to ascertain the nature of the explosion, added the police.

The development comes as the country's western province remains at the forefront of the state's war against terror facing the brunt of the terror attacks along with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Today's explosion comes days after unidentified armed men opened fire on the vehicle of Deputy Commissioner Sherani Sana Mahjabeen in Killa Saifullah district's Tang Gwal Haiderzai area, reported The News.

However, the attackers fled due to the retaliatory fire from the DC’s security guards and no casualties were reported in the incident.

Pakistan has witnessed a worrying surge in terrorist attacks in the ongoing year with fatalities in the first three quarters surpassing the numbers recorded in all of 2023.

As per the third Quarterly Report (Q3) issued by Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), the number of fatalities rose to at least 1,534 in the first three quarters of 2024 compared to 1,523 in 2023.

It further said that nearly 97% of these fatalities occurred in KP and Balochistan — the highest percentage in a decade.

However, despite the worrying numbers, the data released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) show that there has been a significant reduction in militant activity in Balochistan following a surge in August.

In September, the western province witnessed 27 attacks, leading to 22 deaths and 48 injuries as opposed to 43 attacks, 125 deaths, and 77 injuries recorded in August.