Islamabad, Mar. 21, (dpa/GNA) – Pakistani troops guarding a government complex in the port city of Gwadar killed eight assailants when they tried to storm the compound on Wednesday evening, the military said.

At least two soldiers were killed in the gun battle which lasted for hours, said a statement later on Wednesday.

Gwadar, a deep-sea port, is being funded by China under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a flagship global infrastructure project championed by President Xi Jinping.

“We are deploying more troops and resources in Gwadar. We can’t let anybody attack Chinese interests. That’s very important for our economic revival,” an intelligence official, who did not want to reveal his name, told dpa.

Beijing is undertaking an estimated $60-billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project to link the province of Xinjiang in China’s far west with the Arabian Sea.

A vast network of highways and railways is being built through Pakistan to help Beijing reach markets in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and beyond. 

Several rebel groups in Pakistan’s south-western province of Balochistan oppose the Chinese project, calling it a tool to exploit their resources and land.

The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), one of these groups, claimed responsibility for Wednesday’s attack.

GNA