A police station in Quetta came under attack on Saturday, with initial reports suggesting it was a grenade attack, according to police officials.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Operations Quetta Capt (retd) Zuhaib Muhsin told Dawn.com that unidentified motorcyclists attacked the Civil Lines police station with a hand grenade, which was thrown near the gate of the facility. One police personnel was injured in the ensuing explosion.

The wounded policeman, identified as Saboor Achakzai, was taken to Civil Hospital’s Trauma Centre. Police and other law enforcement agencies, meanwhile, combed the crime scene for evidence.

The SSP added that nearby routes have been blocked off and a search for the attackers is under way.

In a statement, Babar Yousafzai, a spokesperson for Balochistan Chief Minister Balochistan Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo said he had reached out to SSP Muhsin and was briefed by him about the incident.

He said: “The best medical facilities should be provided to the injured policeman. May Allah bless him with good health. Terrorists deserve no mercy.”

Police in the city have been targets for terrorists of late. In April, separate blasts had left four police personnel martyred and nearly two dozen wounded.

In May, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) emir Sirajul Haq narrowly escaped a “suicide attack” which police had said targeted his convoy in Balochistan’s Zhob, leaving six people injured.

That same month, a police officer was martyred during a raid in Balochistan’s Sohbatpur district.