UN official kidnapped in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - Unidentified gunmen Monday kidnapped a senior official of the United Nations refugee agency in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan, the police said.

The kidnappers intercepted the vehicle of the local head of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) soon after he left his residence in the provincial capital, Quetta, a police officer said.

The vehicle ploughed into the wall of a house after its Pakistani driver was shot by the attackers. He later died at hospital.

‘The gunmen dragged the UN official into their vehicle and took off,’ the police officer said.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the kidnapping.

Balochistan is facing an insurgency by ethnic Baloch tribesmen, who are seeking more provincial autonomy and a greater share of profits from the area’s natural resources.