A delegation of China’s counterterrorism police force on Friday arrived in Karachi and held meetings with senior police officials and investigators regarding last month's attack on the Chinese consulate and the progress so far made in the case, according to officials.

The delegation met with Additional IG Karachi Dr Amir Ahmed Shaikh, who briefed them about the deadly assault on the morning of November 23.

The Chinese personnel also visited the crime scene in Clifton and held a meeting at the police’s Counter-Terrorism Department, where AIG CTD Dr Waliullah Dal apprised them of the ongoing investigation of the incident.

Editorial: Friday's Karachi, Orakzai attacks bloodily underline that Pakistan is still facing complex militant threats

A senior official familiar with the briefings told Dawn that the Chinese security officials expressed their "satisfaction" about the progress made so far in the investigation.

Three heavily armed militants were shot dead in a shoot-out with police and Rangers during a gun-and-grenade attack on the Chinese consulate. Two police officials and two visa applicants, a father and son, were also killed in the Nov 23 assault.

The attack at the foreign mission, which is located in the ‘high-security zone’ of Clifton’s Block-4, also left a private guard of the facility wounded.

The attackers lobbed at least 10 hand grenades, damaging several parked vehicles, and attempted to break open the armoured gate of the consulate with C4 explosives, but were shot dead before they could do so.

The banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) promptly claimed responsibility even when the operation against the attackers was still underway, according to officials.

Investigators have subsequently detained more than a dozen suspects and their facilitators for questioning from the city and other parts of the country.