Gunmen kill senior government administrator in an attack on his vehicle in southwest Pakistan

QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Gunmen ambushed a vehicle carrying a senior government administrator in southwest Pakistan on Monday, killing him and wounding two other people before fleeing, police and government officials said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack that targeted deputy commissioner Zakir Baloch in Mastung district of Baluchistan province, said Hadahyait Bangulzai, a local police official.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Sarfraz Bugti, the top elected official in Baluchistan, denounced the attack in separate statements and ordered authorities to trace and arrest those behind it.

Baluchistan has been the scene of frequent militant attacks amid a long-running insurgency by groups seeking independence for the mineral- and gas-rich province bordering Iran and Afghanistan. The Pakistani Taliban and other Islamic militant groups also have a presence.