20 killed in attack on miners in Pakistan's restive Balochistan

At least 20 miners were killed, and seven others injured in an early morning attack in Pakistan's mineral-rich province of Balochistan, which borders Afghanistan and Iran.

In Short

• The attack took place in the mineral-rich province of Balochistan
• It occurred days before the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit
• Seven miners were wounded in the attack

Unidentified gunmen lined up miners at a small private coal mine in southwestern Pakistan and shot them on Friday, police and media said, killing at least 20 and wounding seven in rising violence in the restive region.

The attack early in the morning in the mineral-rich province of Balochistan that borders Afghanistan and Iran, is the worst in weeks and comes days ahead of the country hosting a summit of the Eurasian group Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

It also comes as Islamabad hosts a delegation from Saudi Arabia that is exploring mining deals in the South Asian country trying to recover from an economic crisis.