Islamabad, May 9 (आईएएनएस): Gunmen in southwestern Pakistan executed at least seven people in their sleep, in what police on Thursday said was the second incident of ethnic terrorism in the same region within a month.

The attack occurred in the volatile coastal town of Gwadar where Pakistan's political ally China is building a deep-sea port, a project opposed by the West and locals alike.

The victims were from the central province of Punjab and were running a barber shop in the town, local police chief Mohsin Ali said.

It was the second incident targeting people from Punjab in the militancy-infested province of Balochistan in around three weeks. Last month militants off-loaded nine bus passengers and killed them in an execution-style shooting.

The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), a nationalist militant group that opposes Chinese investments in the province, claimed the previous attack, saying the agents of spy agencies were targeted.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for Thursday's attack, but police said they suspect the BLA.

Much of the violence in the region is seen against the Chinese projects to connect its Muslim-dominated region of Xinjiang with the Arabian Sea through Pakistan to reach markets in the Middle East, Europe, Africa and beyond.

Baloch militant and political groups accuse China of stealing their land and resources including several hundred kilometres of shores.