One dead in Pakistan airport attack

Residents tell Reuters news agency that blasts and gunfire have been heard near Quetta airport in Balochistan province.

quetta

A man has been killed and at least two policemen have been wounded in an attack on Quetta airport in Pakistan’s Balochistan region, Reuters news agency reported.

People living near the vicinity of the airport heard eight blasts and gunfire that lasted for about half an hour on Thursday evening. Security officials said the attackers had not breached the perimeter of the airport.

The dead man, who has not immediately been identified, was killed near an air force base that shares a runway with the civilian airport.

Sarfraz Bugti, home minister in the provincial Balochistan government, said rockets had been fired but did not land in the base. 

Four bombs were defused near another air force base in Quetta called Khalid, he said.

The target of the attack was unclear, but Pakistan has suffered several recent attacks on its airports.

Taliban fighters launched a raid on Karachi airport in June that killed 29 people.

Source: Reuters