A suicide bomber set off explosives at a train station in Quetta, the capital of Pakistan’s Balochistan province on Saturday. The explosion killed at least 24 people, including soldiers and railway workers, and injured around 50 others, with many in critical condition. The attack took place at a rush hour when nearly 100 passengers were waiting for a train to Rawalpindi, a northern Pakistani garrison city. 

The explosion targeted a group of passengers, according to senior government official Hamza Shafqaat, and police confirmed that six railway workers and 12 soldiers were among the dead. A widely shared video on social media, including posts by Sputnik India, shows a blast that occurred at a busy railway station in Pakistan this morning, causing widespread panic. TV footage from the scene reveals significant damage, with the platform's steel roof broken and debris, including scattered luggage, all over the area. A tea stall was also destroyed in the explosion.

The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist group, claimed responsibility for the bombing, saying it was aimed specifically at military personnel stationed at the location. The BLA has been involved in an ongoing insurgency in the region, pushing for more autonomy or independence from Pakistan. Ayesha Faiz, a police official in Quetta, stated that some of the seriously injured passengers later died from their injuries in the hospital, increasing the death toll. Government spokesperson Shahid Rind confirmed that all the injured were quickly taken to hospitals for treatment.

In a statement, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif denounced the attack, reaffirming the government's commitment to combating terrorism and promising that those responsible would "pay a very heavy price." The explosion took place just over a week after a motorcycle bomb in Balochistan killed nine people, including five children when it detonated close to a car carrying police officers escorting polio workers.