Six dead in clashes in Pakistan`s southwest

Islamabad: At least six people were killed in an exchange of gunfire in Pakistan`s southwestern province of Baluchistan, an official said Tuesday. The paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) said the clash began Monday night when insurgents attacked a construction company camp in the city of Turbat. Baluchistan, Pakistan`s largest but least developed province, suffers a separatist insurgency and sectarian violence. "Workers were engaged in construction work in Turbat`s Buleda area when militants attacked their machinery late on Monday," Khan Wasey, a Corps spokesman, told a news agency. "FC retaliated and killed five militants after exchange of heavy gunfire." He said an FC soldier wounded in the clashes died on his way to hospital.  The spokesman said the force seized a large cache of weapons from the militants. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Turbat is one of the most volatile areas of Baluchistan, where an insurgency seeking political autonomy and a greater share of profits from oil, gas and mineral resources has been rumbling since 2004.