QUETTA: Gunmen opened fire on a vehicle carrying judicial officials on a national highway in Pakistan’s southwestern Mastung district on Thursday, killing a sessions judge and his security guard and seriously injuring two others, officials said.
Sessions Judge Abdul Hakeem Kakar and his gunman were martyred in the attack. Additional Sessions Judge Tariq Lashari and another person suffered serious injuries. They were going to Mastung from Quetta when they were attacked on the national highway.
Rescue teams shifted the bodies and the injured to a nearby hospital. Authorities have launched an investigation into the attack.
CM Budgit Reacts to Mastung Terror Attack
Strongly recting to the incident, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti said that an attack on Sessions Judge Abdul Hakeem Kakar is an “attack on the state.”
In his statement, Chief Minister Sarfaraz vowed to bring those responsible to justice and said security forces would pursue the attackers at all costs.
“The blood of those who uphold the law will not be shed in vain,” he said.
Bugti also pledged that there would be no leniency for militants or their facilitators. He said the government would crush anyone challenging the writ of the state.
“There will be no safe haven for terrorists in Balochistan,” he said.
The chief minister said authorities would intensify operations against militant groups and dismantle every terrorist network operating in the province.
“We will hold those responsible for the martyrs’ blood accountable,” he said. “The fight against terrorism will continue with full force.”
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
