Pakistan: Saudi Consulate Attacked, No Casualties

Unknown assailants hurled two home-made low-intensity bombs at the Saudi Consulate Wednesday afternoon in the port city of Karachi in Southern Pakistan, causing property damage but there was no human loss reported.

Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Iqbal Mehmoud told news reporters that two motorcyclists, wearing helmets, hurled two home-made bombs at the Saudi Consulate on Khayaban-e-Hafiz Road of Defense area.

The DIG said that there was no human loss but the explosions shattered windowpanes of the consulate building. The assailants managed to flee.

Vice Consular Obaidullah al-Harbi confirmed the incident to media and said that all staff members were safe and that there was no injury.

Police and Rangers cordoned off the area and were conducting investigations. Some local news channels said that police has arrested one of the assailants.

Meanwhile, Saudi Assistant Foreign Minister Prince Khaled bin Saud bin Khaled said today, in a statement made to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) in the Saudi capital city of Riyadh, that Consulate General of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the Pakistani city of Karachi underwent a terror incident where unknown people hurled two bombs at the Consulate’s headquarters.

Further, Prince Khaled made clear that no one of the Consulate’s staff was harmed, noting that such heinous terror act led to simple damages within the buildings which is being currently reconditioned.

Prince Khaled concluded by saying that Pakistani authorities started immediate investigations into the incident with the aim of gathering evidence, and tracking down culprits, asserting in the meantime the full confidence of Saudi Arabia in the ability of the Pakistani law enforcement agencies to nab the perpetrators, and bring them to justice along with providing enough protection to the Saudi diplomatic mission there, and stressing that measures are being coordinated in this regard.