 "Pakistan's national flag at the Mausoleum of Muhammad Ali Jinnah in Karachi, Pakistan on August 14, 2022. Reuters File")
A female suicide bomber killed a Pakistani paramilitary force member and injured four others in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province in an attack claimed by separatists, a district official said on Monday.
“One soldier of the Frontier Corps was killed and four others injured in the suicide attack conducted by a female suicide bomber,” said Bilal Shabbir, the deputy commissioner of Kalat District where the attack took place.
Several ethnic insurgent groups in Balochistan are battling the central government, saying it unfairly exploits gas and mineral resources in the province, where poverty is rife.
One of the groups, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has previously used female militants to stage attacks, though they mostly involve male perpetrators.
Monday’s attack was claimed by a lesser-known faction of BLA known as the Baloch Liberation Army (Azad), in a message sent to journalists.
In August, at least 73 people were killed when separatist militants attacked police stations, railway lines and highways and security forces launched retaliatory operations.