Gunmen kill 3 coal miners in Harnai Balochistan
Mir Salam Jogezai :
Gunmen killed 3 coal miners in Balochistan’s Harnai district on Sunday morning. Sohail Anwar Hashmi, the Deputy Commissioner of Harnai said gunmen opened fire in the mountainous area of Shahrag tehsil of Harnai.
“As a result of the firing, three coal miners were killed”, Mr. Hashmi said. The attackers fled away from the spot after the attack. “The victims were working inside a coal mine when attacked”, the DC informed.
The dead bodies of the coal miners were brought to district headquarters hospital Harnai. A large number of people gathered at the hospital. “Government must apprehend the terrorists behind this brutal attack”, Pir Muhammad Kakar, a central office-bearer of Pakistan Mines Association said. He said there was no justification for killing the innocent coal miners. “This is an inhuman act”, he said.
Police and FC personnel reached the spot
Police and personnel of frontier corps reached the spot of the incident. They cordoned off the area as an investigation into the incident went underway. Miscreants in the past have also targeted and kidnapped coal miners in the area.
Langove condemns the attack
Adviser Home Department, Mir Ziaullah Langove strongly condemned the terrorist attack. In a statement issued after the attack, Mr. Langove stated that the terrorists involved in the incident would be brought to justice. He directed the police to submit a report in this regard. Parliamentary Secretary on Information, Bushra Rind has also strongly condemned the terrorist attack in the Harnai district of Balochistan. She said that the perpetrators of the terrorist act would be brought to justice soon.
In January this year, armed accused kidnapped and brutally murdered 11 Hazara coal miners. The outlawed Islamic State had claimed the responsibility for the attack.
Harnai houses rich coal-reservoirs
Balochistan’s Harnai district houses rich coal reservoirs. Thousands of poverty-hit people from Swat, Shangla, and parts of Southern Afghanistan have been extracting coal from mines for decades. Hazardous working conditions inside coal mines also continue to claim precious human lives most o the time. Thousands of coal miners have lost their lives because of poor or no safety conditions in coal mines located in Dukki, Harnai, Mach, and Quetta areas of Balochistan.
