ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – At least three people were killed and further 23 injured Wednesday when a suicide bomber targeted a police truck in Quetta, Pakistan, according to local officials.
The attack came days after Pakistani Taliban announced the group will no longer abide by a month-long ceasefire with the government, urging fighters to resume attacks in retaliation towards a continuous military campaigns.
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), commonly known as the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack.
Senior police official Azhar Mehesar told AFP the blast targeted a police team preparing to escort polio vaccinators in the city of Quetta, where at least a policeman, a woman and a child were killed.
In a statement to AFP, the TTP claimed responsibility for the attack and said it would soon share further details.
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On Monday, Pakistani Taliban announced they no longer abide by a month-long ceasefire with the government, urging fighters to resume attacks in retaliation towards a continuous military campaigns.
This came at a time the Afghan Taliban have been facilitating peace talks between local militants and the Pakistani government since late last year.
Mohammad Khurasani, a spokesman for the militant group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) told Reuters in a text message that its leadership had decided to end the ceasefire with Pakistan, as India Express reported.
According to a statement, the TTP leadership urged its fighters to resume attacks in retaliation towards a continuous military campaign against them.
The Pakistani military has carried out several offensives against the militants in their strongholds in remote lawless districts bordering Afghanistan.
There was no immediate response from the government.
Who are Pakistani Taliban
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) – commonly known as the Pakistani Taliban – is an umbrella organization of various Islamist armed militant groups operating along the Afghan–Pakistani border.
Formed in 2007 by Baitullah Mehsud, its current leader is Noor Wali Mehsud, who has publicly pledged allegiance to the Afghan Taliban (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan).
Most Taliban groups in Pakistan coalesce under the TTP. Among the stated objectives of TTP is resistance against the Pakistani state. The TTP’s aim is to overthrow the government of Pakistan by waging a terrorist campaign against the Pakistan armed forces and the state.
The TTP has carried out some of the bloodiest attacks inside Pakistan since 2007. It is not directly affiliated with the Afghan Taliban, but pledges allegiance to them.
