Pakistani officials say at least four paramilitary soldiers were killed in an explosion in Balochistan, the southwestern province where separatist militants have waged a long-running insurgency.
The Frontier Corps said in a statement on September 26 that two officers were also injured in the blast, which occurred when an improvised explosive device detonated as a vehicle carrying the troops passed by.
The incident occurred September 25, about 170 kilometers northeast of the provincial capital, Quetta.
No group has claimed responsibility, but separatist militant groups often target Pakistani security forces and Chinese workers in the province.
A day earlier, the Pakistani military claimed to have killed six suspected militants in a southern district of the province.
Also on September 25, police said they had arrested three suspected militants from the banned Balochistan Liberation Army for their role in an August suicide bombing that targeted Chinese workers.
Two children were killed and three people, including Chinese nationals, were injured in that attack.
Beijing has heavily invested in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a $65 billion economic development plan under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
The infrastructure project includes rebuilding the Gwadar deep-water seaport on Balochistan's southern coast.
Access to Gwadar will give China strategic access to the Arabian Sea.
