At least five people were killed Friday and 11 injured when a bomb was set off by remote control near a political gathering in south-western Pakistan, police and health officials said, according to dpa. "The bomb was planted on a bicycle near parking for a political gathering and detonated when the proceedings were under way," Muhammad Arif, a police official, said by phone. Intense gunfire followed the blast in Kuchlak town, 25 kilometers north-west of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan, a province plagued by ethnic violence, Arif said. However, it was not clear who was responsible for the gunfire, he said. Muhammad Nawaz, head of Quetta's civilian hospital, said the death toll might rise because some of the injured were in critical condition. Friday's gathering was for the Awami National Party, a Pashtun party that governs the north-western province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. No one claimed responsibility for the bombing, but Baluch ethnic groups have carried out similar attacks. They demand greater autonomy from the federal government and control of Baluchistan's natural resources, such as minerals and gas. On Thursday, the bullet-riddled bodies of seven coal miners were found near Quetta. The victims were from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's Swat valley and were abducted Saturday. The Baluch and Pashtuns are the largest ethnic groups in Baluchistan.
