The United States on Wednesday condemned the suicide bombing inside University of Karachi in Pakistan last week that killed three Chinese nationals and their Pakistani driver.
A woman wearing a burqa blew herself close to the China-built Confucius Institute inside the university. The bombing was claimed by the Baluchistan Liberation Army. The attack has since been as the latest targeting Chinese nationals inside Pakistan.
US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price told reporters on Wednesday, "We strongly condemned the terrorist attack against Karachi University in Pakistan. We reiterate that condemnation today. A terrorist attack anywhere is an affront to humanity everywhere. But for a terrorist attack to take place at a university or at a religious site or at some of the locations we've seen recently, that is a true affront to mankind."
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The proscribed BLA took to social media to claim responsibility and announce that the bomber was a woman named Shaari Baloch who was a highly educated mother of two young children, belonging to a well-established family and working as a school teacher in Balochistan.
Price further said the US values its bilateral relationship with Pakistan. He added, "We want to continue to work together in areas where we do have mutual interests with our Pakistani partners. That includes counterterrorism, that includes border security as well."
The Chinese government has since asked Pakistan to scale up the security of its nationals in the country. There are thousands of Chinese nationals in the country, many of whom work at many projects forming up the China Pakistan Economic Project, a $62 billion project part of China's Belt and Road Initiative.
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Following the bombing and the Chinese comments, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered a complete review of security arrangements of Chinese nationals in the country. The review will also cover potential threats to CPEC and other China-Pakistan joint ventures, according to reports.
The Chinese natioanls have been targeted earlier as well in Pakistan. In July last year, nine Chinese nationals were among 12 people killed in a bus explosion near a CPEC hydropower plant in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The Chinese consulate in Karachi was attacked in November 2018. Two Chinese natioanls were abducted and executed in 2017.
(With PTI inputs)
