PESHAWAR, Pakistan: Five Chinese working on a major dam construction site were killed along with their driver on Tuesday when a suicide bomber targeted their vehicle in northwestern Pakistan.
Their vehicle plunged into a deep ravine off the mountainous Karakoram Highway after the bomber rammed his car into them and detonated his explosives, police said.
Beijing has poured billions of dollars into Pakistan in recent years, but Chinese-funded projects have sparked resentment and their citizens have frequently come under attack.
Images shared with Agence France-Presse (AFP) show smoke rising from the valley, near the city of Besham in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
"Five Chinese and their local driver were killed in the attack," Muhammad Ali Gandapur, a senior provincial police official, told AFP.
He said the vehicle was traveling between the Dasu hydroelectric dam site, under construction by China Gezhouba Group Co., and the capital Islamabad.
Zahid Khan, a senior local police official, told AFP that "a suicide bomber crashed his vehicle into theirs."
"The vehicle caught fire and plunged down the ravine," he said.
Tuesday's attack comes days after security forces killed at least seven militants as they attempted to storm the offices of Gwadar Port in southwestern Pakistan, considered a cornerstone of Chinese investment.
Militants also killed one soldier as they attempted to storm a major naval air base in the country's southwest, Pakistan's military said on Tuesday.
The latest attack also comes two years after a bomb struck a bus carrying engineers to the Dasu site, killing 13 people, including nine Chinese workers.
"Strategic projects and sensitive sites vital for Pakistan's economic progress and the well-being of its people are being targeted as a conscious effort to retard our progress and slow discord between Pakistan and its strategic allies and partners, most notably China," the army said.
The Chinese embassy in Islamabad described the bombing as a "terrorist act" in a statement reported by Beijing's state media.
"The Chinese embassy and consulates in Pakistan strongly condemn this terrorist act, and express deep condolences for the victims of both countries and extend sincere sympathies to the families of the victims," the embassy said.
Beijing's Foreign Ministry urged Pakistan to "thoroughly investigate the incident as soon as possible, hunt down the perpetrators and bring them to justice."
"We ask Pakistan to take effective measures to ensure the safety and security of Chinese nationals, projects and institutions in Pakistan," a spokesman said.
'Plotted to disrupt'
Beijing is Islamabad's closest regional ally, readily providing financial assistance to bail out its often-struggling neighbor.
"China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic cooperative partners and iron-clad friends," Beijing's Foreign Ministry said. "Any attempt to undermine China-Pakistan cooperation will never succeed."
The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has seen tens of billions of dollars funneled into massive transport, energy and infrastructure projects — all part of Beijing's transnational "Belt and Road" scheme.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, as well as his interior and foreign chiefs, arrived at China's embassy in Islamabad within hours of the bombing.
"Once again, the adversaries of the [CPEC] have plotted to disrupt it through such cowardly acts," Sharif said in a statement. "However, they will never succeed in their malevolent ambitions."
Separatist groups say locals see little benefit from major Chinese projects, with most jobs going to outsiders.
The security of Chinese workers has long been of concern to both countries.
"The Chinese workers were already scared and feared that another attack was coming," said Azeem Khalid, a Chinese investment expert at Comsats University Islamabad. "With every such incident, the speed of the project will be slower."