Bomb blast kills boy in Pakistan restive southwest

QUETTA, Pakistan, Aug 6 (Reuters) A teenaged boy carrying a bomb in Pakistan's troubled southwestern Baluchistan province died today when the explosive went off accidently, police said.

The incident occured in Hub, a town 450 km south of the provincial capital, Quetta.

The bomb exploded as the 15-year-old boy riding on a bicycle was passing a residential colony.

''It appears that he wanted to plant this bomb somewhere but it exploded beforehand,'' said Mohammad Rafiq, a deputy superintendent of police in Hub.

Baluchistan is Pakistan's biggest but the most backward province where tribal militants have been fighting for more autonomy and control over the mineral resources of the region.

Three Chinese workers were gunned down by the militants in Hub in February and police said last month they had arrested a tribal suspected of involvement in that slaying.

Militants say more than 200 people have been killed in the government's crackdown in the region this year but analysts say the figure appears to be exaggerated.

REUTERS AKJ VC1240