At least 11 die in Pakistan suicide bombing

At least 11 people -- including six police officers -- were killed and 10 other people wounded in a major car bomb explosion in Pakistan's Quetta city on Friday, officials have said.

The powerful blast took place outside Baluchistan's provincial police office, security forces confirmed.

Some of the wounded are in a critical condition, prompting fears the death toll could rise, Abdul Razzaq Cheema, Deputy Inspector General of Police confirmed to Anadolu Agency by phone.

Cheema said it was a suicide attack which also damaged nearby buildings and was heard across the city.

No militant group has yet claimed responsibility but similar attacks in Baluchistan have been claimed by Pakistani Taliban sprinter group Jammat ul Ahrar and Lashkar-e-Jehngwi al-Alami, an ally of Daesh in Afghanistan.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Interior Minister Chaudhery Nisar Ali Khan condemned the attack, saying terrorists who carried out such barbaric attacks in the holy month of Ramadan were not Muslim.

Baluchistan province has witnessed dozens of terrorist attacks during recent months, targeting security personnel and civilians in roadside explosions and assassinations.

The mineral-rich southwestern province is a strategically important area of Pakistan. It is a gateway for the multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, considered to be of major significance for the region.

CPEC will connect China's Xinjiang province with Pakistan's Gawadar port in Baluchistan.