Quetta hotel explosion was suicide attack, says Rasheed

FC not being withdrawn

QUETTA: Federal Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed said the blast that took place a day earlier in the parking of a hotel, was a suicide bomb attack.

The minister was holding a news conference Thursday to discuss the Quetta bomb blast from last night, which killed five and injured 12 others.

Updating the masses about the casualties and the injured in the blast, Shaikh Rasheed said out of the 11 who were injured, six had left the hospital after getting treated.

“The rest are in hospital, out of which only two to three are in a critical state,” he said.

Interior Minister said that the Frontier Corps troops are not being withdrawn from Quetta following the explosion at Serena Hotel on Wednesday night and added, they have handed over 13 check posts to the police but they are not being withdrawn now, he remarked.

To a question, the interior minister clarified the Chinese ambassador was in Quetta for the past few days and is safe. He rejected speculation that the Chinese ambassador was at the hotel when the blast took place, saying that the diplomat was somewhere else he added.

Shaikh Rasheed pointed towards India’s activities aimed at destabilising Pakistan, saying that during the past eight to 10 days, around 250,000 plus social media accounts were created in India.

The minister said all 22 law enforcement institutions including the FC, Rangers, Coastal Guards and others to remain on “high alert”.