AT least 11 people were shot dead and others wounded when Baluchi separatists attacked the stock exchange in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city, yesterday, before they were killed by security services.

Four men armed with assault rifles launched a grenade at the entrance to the building and opened fire at a security post.

“The attackers came in a silver Corolla and were stopped by police at the gate outside where the exchange of fire took place,” police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon said.

Workers based in the building, which is inside a high-security zone, fled for their safety. Trading continued uninterrupted as the assailants were shot dead in a gun battle.

The Baluchistan Liberation Army-linked Majeed Brigade claimed responsibility for the attacks.

They are one of a number of groups fighting for autonomy for the south-western Baluchistan province, which remains impoverished despite being rich in gas and other minerals.

Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the “terrorist attack” and said that the country was determined to root terrorism from its soil.