QUETTA: Two separatist militants were killed Sunday when they attacked a convoy carrying Chinese workers to a Beijing-financed port project in Gwadar, officials said.

A spokesman for China’s consulate in Karachi said none of its nationals were killed or wounded in the attack, and urged Chinese citizens to heighten their vigilance.

Various Baloch separatist groups have claimed attacks on projects linked to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project in the past, with thousands of security personnel deployed to counter threats against Beijing’s interests.

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The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) said Sunday two of its fighters died in a “self-sacrificing” attack on a convoy going to Gwadar port.

“The operation has concluded with the elimination of two assailants,” a senior police official told AFP, adding that three Pakistani soldiers were wounded.

China’s consulate in Karachi said it had asked Pakistan to “severely punish the perpetrators and take concrete and effective measures to ensure the safety of Chinese citizens, institutions and projects”.