“About 10-12 gunmen blockaded the Quetta-Taftan Highway N-40 in the vicinity of Sultan Charhai near Noshki and abducted nine passengers from a bus,” Deputy Commissioner Habibullah Musakhel told Dawn.com.

The gunmen checked the identity cards of passengers from the Taftan-bound bus and kidnapped them, he added.

The bodies of the abducted passengers were found under a bridge nearby after an hour and a half, Musakhel said.

It is still not clear whether their belongings were taken by the gunmen.

The nine victims were from Punjab, Noshki Station House Officer Asad Mengal told Dawn.com.

The victims — all of whom were men — were from Wazirabad, Mandi Bahauddin, and Gujranwala, according to identity documents seen by Dawn.com.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif has condemned the incident.