Pakistan: 23 killed in attack

In one of the deadliest attacks in Pakistan’s restive southwest, gunmen identified 23 passengers and shot them dead after abducting them from buses, vehicles and trucks, police and officials said Monday.

Senior police officer Ayub Achakzai said the killings took place overnight in Kusakhil district of Balochistan province. The attackers torched at least ten vehicles before fleeing the scene, AP news agency writes.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi described the attack as “barbaric” and promised that the perpetrators would not be punished. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but separatists in Balochistan have often killed workers and others to force them to leave eastern Punjab province, which has seen years of insurgency.