Atleast 8 people were killed and 20 sustained injuries in a blast that targeted Bethel Memorial Methodist Church located on Quetta’s Zarghoon Road.
According to details, an explosion took place intially and was followed by gunshots. Police, Frontier Corps personnel, rescue teams and Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS) were immediately dispatched to the area. The area was cordoned off while an exchange of fire occurred between the security forces and the attackers.
Balochistan Home Minister Sarfaraz Bugti confirmed that four militants targeted the church. He said that two of the compounds have been cleared while operation is underway in the third one and will be completed soon.
Two attackers were killed during the operation as one of them blew himself up on the church gate while the other was shot dead by the security forces. Two other fled the scene as the personnel tightened noose on them. None of them succeeded in entering the church building.
A large number of people, majority of them women and children, were present in the church for the Sunday services at the time of blast. A female eye-witness say that at least 400 people were present in the church.
An emergency has been imposed in the hospitals of the city. Rescue teams have transported the injured to Civil Hospital Quetta.
