Seven people were shot dead after being offloaded in Balochistan’s Barkhan area.

Barkhan (Channel News) – At least seven persons were slain in Balochistan’s Barkhan area when armed men unloaded them from a bus and shot them after verifying their identification.

According to Assistant Commissioner Barkhan, Khadim Hussain Bhangar, armed men blocked the road near Barkhan’s Rahkan region and halted a bus from Quetta bound for Lahore. After examining passengers’ identification credentials, the attackers removed them from the van and shot seven of them dead.

According to accounts, those slain in the horrific incident were from Punjab.

Deputy Commissioner Barkhan Waqar Khursheed and Assistant Commissioner Khadim Hussain Bhangar arrived at the scene, accompanied by a large police detachment.

Meanwhile, the district government has halted traffic in the Chhapar and Kangri parts of the district to prevent any untoward incidents. AC Barkhan stated that an emergency was declared at Rakni Hospital.

In a similar event in August of last year, 23 people were slain after being forced from their vehicles by armed gunmen in Balochistan’s Musakhel area.

According to Musakhel SP Ayub Achakzai, the incident took place at an armed checkpoint on the inter-provincial highway at Rarah Sham in Khangri, roughly two kilometres from Dera Ghazi Road.

After identifying passengers, the assailants forced them to exit trucks and buses and shot them. The perpetrators also set fire to ten cars before fleeing the site.

Police and levies responded quickly and brought the bodies to a hospital.

According to reports, the majority of the deceased were from Punjab.