Police in Pakistan said Thursday two school children were killed and six others were wounded when gunman opened fire on van taking the children to school in the eastern province of Punjab.
Police and rescue service personnel said the attack occurred early Thursday in the city of Attock’s Dheri Kot district. They said driver of the van, who was among the injured, was apparently the target of the attack. They believe the gunman, who fled the scene, had “personal enmity” with the driver.
Police have launched a manhunt for the suspects.
The officials said the two killed were both girls, between 10 and 11, and the five others injured were all children of the about the same age.
Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack in a statement, calling an attack on children cruel and brutal.
The Pakistan office of U.N. children’s agency, UNICEF, issued a statement expressing shock and sadness at the shooting and deep condolences to the families of the victims.
The shooting comes amid a surge in targeted attacks in Pakistan in recent months.
Some information for this report was provided by The Associated Press, and Agence France-Presse.
