30 NATO supply trucks torched in Balochistan

QUETTA: Unidentified gunmen torched 30 trucks carrying supplies for international troops stationed in Afghanistan‘s southwestern Balochistan province, officials said on Friday.

The trucks, including fuel tankers, were set ablaze at a terminal in the Kharotabad area near the Quetta International Airport on Thursday night, a resident told Pajhwok Afghan News.

Abdullah said the terminal caught fire as a result of the rocket attack and gunfire. “The terminal was full of NATO supply vehicles, but it’s not yet clear how many have been destroyed.”

Police official, Malak Arshad, told reporters 30 of 44 NATO supply vehicles, parked at the terminal, were burnt while the rest 14 shifted to a secure place. Firefighters were trying to control the flames.

However, Balochistan Interior Minister Nasibullah Bazi said 24 vehicles were completely burnt when a rocket hit the terminal. A gunbattle followed the rocket strike, he added.

Police have launched an investigation into the incident, but no one has been detained in connection with the assault. No group has so far claimed responsibility, but Pakistani Taliban are often blamed for such attacks.  

Islamabad closed a key supply route for NATO-led troops soon after more than two dozen Pakistani soldiers were killed in an ISAF airstrike.

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