China, Pakistan vow to hunt down terrorists

China, Pakistan vow to hunt down terrorists

China will work with Pakistan to hunt down the terrorists responsible for the bombing in Karachi, in southern Pakistan's Sindh province, that killed three Chinese citizens, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Wednesday. A van of the Confucius Institute at the University of Karachi was hit by a suicide attack on Tuesday, leaving three Chinese teachers dead and one injured and causing casualties among Pakistani citizens, the ministry said in a news release. The attack was "premeditated and aimed at Chinese citizens", Wang said at a daily news conference, describing the attack as "extremely abominable and outrageous" and expressing China's "strong condemnation and indignation”. He expressed his condolences for the deaths of Chinese and Pakistani citizens and extended sympathies to the injured and the bereaved families. Wang added that the Chinese consul-general in Karachi visited the injured Chinese citizen on Tuesday, who "has received proper treatment and is recovering". The ministry and Chinese diplomatic missions in Pakistan immediately initiated their emergency response after the attack and sent staff to the scene, Wang said. They asked the Pakistani side to do all it can to treat the injured and handle follow-up matters, investigate the attack immediately and thoroughly, and apprehend and punish the perpetrators to the full extent of the law, the spokesman said. They also asked the Pakistani side to spare no efforts to ensure the safety of Chinese citizens and institutions in Pakistan, and never let such things happen again, according to Wang. Wang called out on Chinese citizens in Pakistan to closely follow the local security situation and guard against security risks."The ironclad friendship between China and Pakistan is unbreakable. Any attempt to undermine the two countries' mutual trust and cooperation, as well as the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will fail," Wang said, answering a question on whether China is concerned that the threat of terrorism may affect its economic projects in Pakistan.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif visited the Chinese embassy in Pakistan on Tuesday evening to convey his condolences, and said the Pakistani government will conduct an in-depth probe and give exemplary punishment to the perpetrators, according to the Foreign Ministry's news release. Shahbaz said the authorities in Sindh and Karachi have launched a full-scale investigation, and that his government will never allow any force to undermine Pakistan-China friendship. According to Sichuan Normal University, one of the victims is Huang Guiping, whom it had sent to take up the post of Chinese director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Karachi. The Chinese International Education Foundation said in a statement that we "solemnly request that an investigation be launched into the atrocity and that all the perpetrators be held accountable according to law”. The premier visited the Chinese embassy on Monday, where he met Ambassador Jiang Zaidong and offered his heartfelt condolences over the loss of Chinese citizens’ lives in the terrorist attack in Karachi. He said he would personally monitor the investigation and ensure that security arrangements for foreign nationals would be further strengthened. The Foreign Office echoed the prime minister’s remarks, with spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch denouncing the attack as a “heinous terrorist act”. At the weekly media briefing, the spokesperson assured that Pakistan’s security and law enforcement agencies were fully mobilized to track down the attackers.“This barbaric act will not go unpunished,” she said, adding, “We will bring to justice those responsible for this cowardly attack, including the Majeed Brigade.”She also affirmed that Pakistan was in close coordination with the Chinese embassy and reiterated the country’s unwavering commitment to ensuring the safety of Chinese nationals, projects, and institutions. The Chinese Embassy in Pakistan also issued a fresh alert, advising Chinese citizens and enterprises to heighten their security precautions. The embassy also confirmed that the slain nationals were staff members of the Port Qasim Electric Power Company (Pvt) Ltd.In response; China pressured Pakistan to provide compensation to the victims’ families and ensure improved security measures. This shift in China’s stance became more pronounced after the Karachi University bombing, with Chinese leaders stating that future cooperation on major projects hinged on Pakistan’s ability to address security concerns. The attack comes days before the visit of Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang to Pakistan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation conference being held in Islamabad from Oct 15 to 16.

Investigators probing the powerful explosion near the Karachi airport concluded that it was a vehicle-borne IED suicide blast. Police sources, citing initial findings, said that bomb disposal experts had submitted their report, disclosing that “approximately 70-80-kg commercial explosive” was used to target the Chinese nationals. The sources said that the alleged suicide bomber was identified as Shah Fahad, a resident of Naushki in Balochistan. He had come to Karachi on Oct 4 and stayed at a hotel in Saddar, which he left on Sunday around noon.

Dr Syed identified the slain Chinese nationals as Sichuan, 35, and Chuanxin, 41.According to the Sindh government’s Rescue 1122 official Hassaan Khan; seven vehicles that caught fire after the blast were completely destroyed. On the other hand, the Sindh chief minister, while chairing a meeting attended by top officials of police and other law enforcement agencies, ordered the formation of a joint committee to probe the incident.

Naqvi visits Chinese embassy. Against the backdrop of the deadly bombing, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also visited the Chinese embassy on Monday to brief the envoy about the blast and the subsequent investigation. The minister described the blast as an attack on the Pak-China friendship and made it clear that it would not be tolerated. During his meeting with Chinese envoy Jiang Zaidong, the interior minister said the security of the Chinese brethren working for the development of Pakistan was his government’s top priority.

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