Pakistan, May 25 -- The suicide bombing at Chaman Phatak in Quetta has arrived like cold water thrown over national morale that, only a day earlier, had been lifted by words of appreciation from abroad for mediation in the Iran crisis, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledging that Pakistan had done an "admirable job" as the primary interlocutor in efforts to move Washington and Tehran away from the abyss.

According to the Balochistan government, at least 14 people were killed and 20 injured when a vehicle-borne suicide bomber tore through a shuttle train near Chaman Phatak shortly after 8 am on Sunday, while officials themselves made clear that these were initial figures in a developing rescue operation. The train was travell...