At least 26 people were killed in a powerful suicide attack on a railway station in southwestern Pakistan

QUETTA, Pakistan — A suicide bomber blew himself up at a train station in southwestern Pakistan on Saturday, killing at least 26 people, including soldiers and railway personnel, and wounding about 62, some seriously, authorities said.

According to senior government official Hamza Shafqaat, the attack took place while about 100 passengers were waiting for a train from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, to the garrison city of Rawalpindi.

When asked about a security breach that led to the bombing, Shafqaat told reporters, “Such suicide attacks are often very difficult to stop.”

However, Shahid Nawaz, head of security at Quetta railway station, emphasized that there was no violation as the attacker disguised himself as a passenger and blew himself up among people at the station.

TV footage showed the steel structure of the platform’s roof crumbling and a tea stall collapsing. Luggage was strewn everywhere. Most of the victims were taken to a government hospital, some to a military hospital.

Health ministry and police spokesman Wasim Baig said that more than a dozen soldiers and six railway workers were among those killed at the station, and that a crossing gate was set up to check whether anyone was carrying explosives at the station. However, the station has more than one entrance without such security.

The Balochistan Liberation Army, a separatist group, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying in a statement that a suicide bomber targeted soldiers at the train station. The outlawed BLA has long been waging an insurgency seeking independence from Islamabad.

Mohammed Baloch, senior superintendent in charge of police operations, said separatists often attack soft targets.

“They also attack in retaliation when they are arrested. We must all fight this war. We are resilient. “Our teams are here and trying to save as many lives as possible.”

Police said some of the seriously injured died in hospital, increasing the death toll.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the bomb attack in his statement and added that those who organized the attack “will pay a heavy price for this” and that the security forces are determined to eliminate the “terrorist threat”.

The Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs also condemned the bombing and expressed condolences to the families of the victims, as did the Russian Embassy in Islamabad.

Saturday’s attack came just over a week after a powerful motorcycle-mounted bomb exploded near a vehicle carrying police officers tasked with protecting polio workers in the province, killing nine people, including five children.

In August, the BLA launched multiple coordinated attacks on passenger buses, police and security forces across Balochistan, killing more than 50 people, mostly civilians.

Oil and mineral rich Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest but also least populated province. It is the center of the country’s ethnic Baloch minority, whose members say they face discrimination and exploitation by the central government. In addition to separatist groups, Islamist militants also operate in the state.

The BLA mostly targets security forces and foreigners, especially Chinese nationals who are in Pakistan as part of Beijing’s multibillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative working on major infrastructure projects. The group frequently demands that all Chinese-financed projects be halted and workers leave Pakistan to avoid further attacks.

Last month, the BLA claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb that targeted a convoy of Chinese citizens outside Karachi airport, killing two people. Beijing has asked Pakistan to ensure the safety of its citizens working in Balochistan and other parts of the country.

Associated Press writer Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, contributed to this report.