China sends investigators to Pakistan to probe bus blast that killed 9 Chinese workers

China on July 17 said that it has sent investigators to Pakistan in a bid to probe a bus explosion that killed 12 people, including nine Chinese nationals. Last week, the shuttle bus, which was carrying around 40 Chinese engineers, surveyors and mechanical staff to the Dasu Hydropower Project, fell into a ravine following an explosion. Previously, Islamabad had blamed the blast on a mechanical failure that led to a gas leak, however, China called it a “terrorist attack” and said that the two countries will work together to “find out the truth”. 

Following a phone call with his Pakistani counterpart, Chinese public security minister Zhao Kezhi said in a statement, “China and Pakistan will work together to find out the truth”. Kezhi added that Beijing has “sent technical experts in criminal investigation to Pakistan to assist in the investigation”. Further, he called on Islamabad to strengthen security for Chinese nationals in the country. 

China calls bus blast 'act of terrorism' 

The Chinese Communist Party's mouthpiece Global Times has asserted that the explosion was “clearly an act of terrorism that is both carefully planned and supported by information”. On Friday, Chinese premier Li Keqiang raised the issue with Imran Khan during a phone call where he stressed the need for Pakistan to use "all necessary measures" to probe the incident and hold the culprits accountable. Addressing the media on Saturday, the country's Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed revealed that 15 Chinese officials had arrived in Pakistan for the investigation and added that the injured are being treated at the Pakistan Army Hospital.

Assuring that the security of Chinese nationals will be strengthened further, he also mentioned that Pakistan PM Imran Khan had told him and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi to visit China. Meanwhile, the Chinese ambassador to Pakistan visited the site of the shuttle bus explosion to investigate the cause, together with the Pakistani military and a Chinese team. In the briefing, Pakistani officials claimed that terrorists used homemade explosives with no ball bearings. 

Meanwhile, it is worth mentioning that China has repeatedly claimed its position as Pakistan’s close ally and a major investor in neighbouring Pakistan. While several anti-Pakistan government militants have attacked Chinese projects in the past, the bus on Wednesday crashed into a ravine in Northwest Pakistan where Chinese engineers have been working on hydroelectric projects for many years for the Belt and Road Initiative. In the aftermath of the crash, Pakistani Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said “terrorism cannot be ruled out” as “traces of explosives” were discovered.

(Image: AP)