Gunmen kill 7 laborers in southwest Pakistan

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) - Unidentified gunmen killed seven laborers and injured another in a terrorist attack in southwest Pakistan, police said on Sunday.

The incident occurred in the Panjgur district of southwestern Balochistan province on Saturday night, where gunmen opened fire on a group of laborers in an under-construction house.

All the deceased and injured belonged to the northeastern Punjab province.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack, however, security forces point a finger of blame at outlawed separatist groups that have long been targeting laborers from Punjab.

Suspected militants killed 23 people from Punjab last month after forcing them to disembark from several vehicles near the Musakhel district of Balochistan.

Pakistan has seen a surge in terror attacks in recent years, particularly in the provinces of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and southwestern Balochistan.

Mineral-rich Balochistan is Pakistan's largest but poorest province. Security forces have long faced a low-intensity rebellion from Baloch separatists, who claim the province has been denied its due developments.