QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Dozens of militants attacked a police post overnight in southwestern Pakistan, triggering an intense gunbattle that killed nine police officers and wounded some others, officials said Tuesday in the latest escalation of militant violence in the region where insurgents have stepped up attacks on security forces.The attack took place in a remote area of Ziarat district in Balochistan province, police said, without providing further details. The assailants also abducted eight police officers, but all were later recovered by security forces, said Shahid Rind, a spokesman for the Balochistan government.No group immediately claimed responsibility for the latest attack, though suspicion is likely to fall on the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army.The BLA claimed responsibility for a weekend suicide attack on a security post in the coastal town of Jiwani, though the government has neither confirmed nor denied the claim.
Authorities, however, acknowledged that armed men attacked civilians on the outskirts of Quetta city over the weekend. Since then, villagers have staged a sit-in near Quetta, demanding better security and protection against future attacks.
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