QUETTA: At least 15 people were injured when a bomb blast derailed a passenger train in the southwestern Pakistani province of Balochistan on Friday, a provincial government official said.

The attack, claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army, derailed eight carriages including the locomotive, Deputy Commissioner Bolan Agha Samiullah told Reuters.

He had earlier said the rescue team was facing difficulties as the site was in a mountainous area.

Five soldiers martyred in IED blast in Balochistan’s Kahan: ISPR

Pakistani security forces have been the militants’ main focus, though they have also targeted Chinese interests, given Beijing’s increasing economic footprint in the region.

Among China’s major projects in Balochistan is the port of Gwadar located near the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial oil shipping route in the Arabian Sea.