According to the ministry’s website, Bahram Qassemi condemned the attack and offered condolences and sympathies to the Pakistani government and nation, especially the bereaved families of the victims.

He underlined that Iran attaches great importance to the security and stability of its neighbors, Pakistan in particular, and expressed hope that the Pakistani government and people would maintain unity and vigilance to counter the plots hatched by the enemies.

At least 16 people were killed when a powerful bomb ripped through a vegetable market in Quetta early Friday.

At least nine of those killed were Hazaras, a Shia Muslim minority group that has repeatedly been the target of extremists.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, which also injured at least 30 people, some of them critically. But Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a banned extremist group, has often carried out attacks against Hazaras in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan Province.

For years, the Hazaras have lived in a state of perpetual fear in Quetta, and promises made by successive governments have failed to ensure their safety.