KHUZDAR: A local leader of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) and two women were killed and five others injured in a roadside explosion near Kalat district on Thursday, officials said.

The incident occurred in the Kapootu area when a pickup vehicle carrying eight people was hit by an improvised explosive device (IED) planted on the roadside near Killi Kapootu, according to Levies officials.

The vehicle was coming from Kalat when the blast took place.

The pickup was being driven by JUI-F local leader and union councilmember Maulana Abdullah Nachari. `When the vehicle reached the site, a powerful explosion occurred, completely destroying the vehicle,` a Levies official said.

As a result, Maulana Abdullah Nachari and two women identified as Bibi Gul Bano and Bibi Haseena were killed on the spot, while five others sustained injuries.

Police and Levies personnel rushed to the site and shifted the injured and the deceased to the District Hospital Kalat.

`We have received three bodies, including two women, and five injured at the hospital, doctors in Kalat said. `The injured were later referred to Civil Hospital Quetta for further treat-ment.

A senior official from the Kalat administration said the IED appeared to have been planted to target security forces.

`Apparently, it seems miscreants had planted the IED to target security personnel, but unfortunately the pickup collided with the device,` the official told Dawn.

The injured were identified as Ali Jan, Muhammad Hayat, Mir Gul, Izzat Khan, and Muhammad Aslam.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. Levies officials said an investigation is underway.

Following medico-legal formalities, the bodies were handed over to the families.