A van driver died and five passengers were hurt on Thursday when their vehicle hit a landmine in the latest violence, officials said. The van was travelling towards the town of Kohlu in Balochistan province when it hit a mine planted on the road, local administrator Nasim Lehri said.
Balochistan has been in the grip of a sporadic insurgency blamed on rebel insurgent groups. Unidentified gunmen on Wednesday shot dead a pro-government politician near Quetta and other attackers damaged a nearby natural gas pipeline. Also on Wednesday a soldier was killed in Dera Bugti area while clearing a landmine suspected to have been planted by rebels from a local tribe, police said.