It was the kind of attack Pakistani authorities had dreaded.
A highly educated female suicide bomber killed three Chinese teachers in Karachi in April along with their local driver, targeting nationals from Pakistan's most important partner and seeking to undermine a relationship on which Islamabad's financial survival largely depends.
The blow threatened a major segment of Beijing's Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, a $65 billion network of roads, railways, pipelines and ports in Pakistan that will connect China to the Arabian Sea and help Islamabad expand and modernise its economy.
Separatists from the vast, impoverished Pakistani province of Balochistan claimed responsibility for the attack after a young, educated mother from a well-to-do family blew herself up in an assault captured on CCTV and broadcast on local news channels.
In a video on social media, the separatists warned China to leave Pakistan or face further carnage.
Even though months have passed since the attack, Pakistani authorities remain deeply worried.
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