Blast after pro-Palestine rally in Pakistan leaves several dead
Motorbike bomb explodes in Balochistan province's Chaman, killing six people and wounding 13, including a hardline leader, officials say.
Local residents examine damage to vehicles at the site of a bomb blast in Chaman, in southwestern Pakistan, on May 21, 2021.
A bomb blast has killed six people at a pro-Palestinian rally in southwest Pakistan and wounded 13 others, including the leader of a religious party that organised the event, according to police, but there was no immediate claim of responsibility.
The motorcycle bomb exploded as people dispersed at the end of the rally held in the city of Chaman near the Afghan border in the province of Balochistan on Friday, the region's police chief, Jafar Khan, told Reuters news agency by telephone.
He added that the bombing also wounded Maulana Abdul Qadir Luni, a cleric and leader of the religious party, which has a history of supporting Afghan Taliban.
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Restive region
The mineral-rich province bordering Iran and Afghanistan has long been convulsed by a Balochistan's militants seeking a greater share in the profits from exploitation of regional resources.
Other operators included militants linked to the Afghan and local Taliban as well as Daesh terror group.
The province is home to the newly expanded Gwadar deepwater port, the centrepiece of a planned $65 billion investment in China's Belt and Road Initiative economic corridor.
READ MORE: Blast in southwest Pakistan hotel leaves several dead
In April, a car bomb exploded in the parking area of a luxury hotel in the provincial headquarters of Quetta, killing four and wounding 11.
China's envoy to Pakistan, who had been staying at the hotel, was away at the time, however.
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