26 dead in suicide blast at Pak railway station

At least 26 people were killed and over 60 injured, some critically, after an explosion at a railway station in Quetta, Pakistan, in what authorities suspected to be a suicide bomber who blew himself up.

The deceased victims included 14 soldiers and 12 civilians, said Wasim Baig, spokesperson for Quetta's Sandeman Provincial Hospital, raising an earlier toll of 24 provided by police.

The attack happened around 8.45am local time, when nearly 100 passengers were waiting for a train to travel to Peshawar from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, according to Hamza Shafqaat, a senior government administrator.

The Balochistan Liberation Army, a separatist group, claimed the attack in a statement saying a suicide bomber targeted troops present at the railway station. The attack "was carried out on a Pakistani army unit at Quetta railway station... after completing a course at the Infantry School," the BLA said in the statement.

Balochistan inspector general of police for Mouzzam Jah Ansari told news agency Reuters the station is usually busy early in the day, which is when the blast took place. "The target was army personnel from the Infantry School," he said, with many of the injured in critical condition. Reuters said the BLA emailed its statement to the news agency claiming the attack.

CCTV camera footage from the railway station ostensibly showed the steel structure of the platform's roof blown apart and a destroyed tea stall. Luggage was strewn everywhere. Forty-six members of the security forces and 14 civilians were wounded, Baig added.