Chinese investigators arrived in Pakistan on Friday to join a probe into Tuesday’s suicide attack in Bisham which claimed the lives of six people, including five Chinese nationals, according to the interior ministry.
The five Chinese engineers — and their Pakistani driver — were killed in the suicide bombing on Tuesday while travelling between Islamabad and a hydroelectric dam construction site in Dasu in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The bus was attacked in the Bisham city of KP’s Shangla district.
The attack prompted China to demand a thorough probe into the deadly blast and security for its citizens. In response, Islamabad announced a swift probe to hold the “perpetrators and accomplices” accountable.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi met a Chinese team of investigators at Beijing’s embassy in Islamabad today and briefed them on the investigation so far, Reuters quoted a ministry statement as saying.
According to state-run Radio Pakistan, Naqvi assured the special investigation team that had come from China that the real culprits of the attack would be brought to justice.
Measures pertaining to the protection of Chinese nationals and overall security were also discussed on the occasion. The interior minister also met with the Chinese ambassador and updated him on the probe into the incident.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said China’s inter-departmental working group carried out comprehensive emergency response work with the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan and the relevant enterprises.
He said the head of the working group, Director Bai Tian of the Department of Foreign Security Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, met with Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Foreign Secretary Syrus Qazi, Naqvi and other officials.
Director Bai Tian asked Pakistan to “thoroughly investigate the incident as soon as possible, properly handle the aftermath, effectively strengthen security measures, completely eliminate security risks, and make every effort to ensure the absolute safety of Chinese personnel, institutions and projects in Pakistan”, Jian added.
“Pakistan said that it has fully carried out investigation and follow-up work on the incident, and taken all measures to further strengthen the security protection of Chinese personnel, projects and institutions,” he further said.
The spokesperson said that the working group would also carry out related work during its stay in Pakistan.
On Wednesday, the government had reiterated its resolve to comprehensively combat terrorism by employing all resources available to the state and bring the perpetrators to justice swiftly.
In response to the Chinese government’s demand to promptly investigate the incident and act against those involved, the government had also decided to form a joint investigation team to probe the attack.
A day ago, the Foreign Office had said there was no doubt that the attack was “orchestrated by the enemies of Pak-China friendship”. It had asserted that the incident would not impact the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and other aspects of bilateral cooperation between China and Pakistan.__dawn.com
