Security personnel inspect the site of a suicide attack near Besham city in the Shangla district of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on March 26, 2024. Five Chinese nationals working on the Dasu hydropower plant were killed along with their driver on March 26 when a suicide bomber targeted their vehicle in northwest Pakistan, officials said. Photo: AFP

Five Chinese nationals and their Pakistani driver were killed in a suicide terror attack on Tuesday at the China-invested Dasu hydropower project, the Chinese Embassy to Pakistan said in a statement. The embassy has demanded Pakistan to conduct a thorough investigation and punish the culprits severely. 

Chinese experts believe the latest attack is a copy of the July 2021 Dasu terror attack in which nine Chinese nationals and four Pakistani people were killed. This latest case should serve as a wake-up call for Pakistan that it needs to improve the security situation in the country and for China that it should be aware of the terrorist forces that are trying to sabotage the success of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, they said.

Around 1 pm local time on Tuesday, a vehicle from a Chinese construction company involved in the Dasu hydropower plant project in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was targeted by a vehicle, resulting in the death of five Chinese nationals and one Pakistani national, the Chinese Embassy said in a statement it sent to the Global Times on Tuesday. 

Another bus carrying Chinese personnel was damaged in the terrorist attack, but the occupants of the vehicle were safely evacuated. All other Chinese personnel have arrived at the project campsite safely, the Global Times learned on Tuesday. 

The Chinese Embassy and Consulates in Pakistan strongly condemned this act of terrorism, express deep condolences to the victims from both countries, and offer sincere sympathies to the families of the deceased, read the embassy statement. 

The Chinese Embassy said they are working closely with the Pakistani authorities to thoroughly investigate and severely punish the attackers, while also implementing effective measures to protect the safety of Chinese nationals, institutions and projects in Pakistan and to prevent similar incidents from occurring.

In a separate statement, the Chinese Embassy said that Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari issued a statement strongly condemning the terrorist attack on the Dasu project, issued a statement strongly condemning the terrorist attack on the Dasu project, expressing his deep grief and sorrow over casualties. 

The president reiterated that the enemies of Pakistan would never cause damage to Pakistan-China friendships.

Today's attack was orchestrated by the enemies of Pakistan-China friendship. We will resolutely act against all such forces and defeat them, read a statement the Pakistani Foreign Ministry released on Tuesday. 

Pakistan and China are close friends and iron brothers. The life and safety of Chinese nationals in Pakistan is of paramount importance. Pakistan will continue to work with our Chinese brothers in ensuring the safety and security of Chinese nationals, projects and institutions in Pakistan, it said.

It has also initiated emergency procedures immediately, and is urging the Pakistani side to conduct a thorough investigation into the attack and to take stringent actions against the perpetrators. They have also called for practical and effective steps to ensure the safety of Chinese nationals, institutions and projects in Pakistan, ensuring such incidents do not happen again.

In July 2021, nine Chinese nationals were killed in a shuttle bus explosion in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on their way to the China-invested Dasu hydropower project. Later, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi informed China that the suicide attack was carried out by a branch of the Pakistani Taliban backed by Indian and Afghan intelligence agencies.

Qian Feng, director of the Research Department of the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, called this terrorist attack a "copy" of the 2021 attack. "The project is located in remote mountainous terrain in a valley, where religious extremists and terrorist forces are very active. And their method of attack is similar," Qian told the Global Times. 

Although the real culprits of this attack are yet to be found out, Qian said this case should serve as a wake-up call for Pakistan that improving the security situation in Pakistan is still a long and arduous task, requiring joint efforts from all parties, including Pakistan. 

This also indicates that there are always terrorist forces in the international and regional arenas that do not want to see the success of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, and are constantly scheming to sabotage it.