4 policemen four labourers killed in two separate incidents in Balochistan

Karachi, Mar 23 (PTI) Unidentified armed men have killed four policemen and four labourers in two separate incidents in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province.
    In the first incident, four policemen were killed when armed men on a motorcycle opened fire on a patrolling police mobile in the Gharibabad area of Noshki city on Saturday.
    Police Hashim Khan told the media that the bodies of the policemen were sent to a hospital and the police had cordoned off the area and launched a search operation for the assailants.
    In the second incident, four labourers from Punjab province were killed in the Malangzai area of Kalat’s Mangochar city.
    Kalat Deputy Commissioner (DC) retired Captain Jamil Baloch, "All five belonged to Sadiqabad in Punjab province and were working as borewell drillers."
    No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks.
    The terror attacks come during a tense situation in the province because of protests called by the Baloch Yakjehti Committees (BYC).             
Many parts of the province remained shut down even on Sunday on the call of the BYC, whose central leaders have been arrested since Saturday after calling for a wheel-jam and shutter-down strike.
    Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti condemned the attacks as a “brutal act of terrorism”.    
    The development comes amid a tense security situation prevailing in the province after last week’s terrorist hijacking of the Jaffar Express train in Bolan district.
     The hijacking of the train has also emboldened the insurgent groups in Balochistan and has been followed by a series of other smaller terror attacks.
    Last month, unidentified gunmen killed seven people travelling to Punjab after off-loading them from a passenger bus in the Barkhan district.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)