By Staff Reporter
QUETTA: Security forces killed at least 67 militants on Saturday as clashes continued in the southwestern province of Balochistan after thwarting coordinated attacks at 12 locations, security sources said, in an escalation of violence in the insurgency-plagued region.
“The confirmed number of militants killed in the operation against Fitna al-Hindustan (Baloch Liberation Army) that has been ongoing since morning has risen to 67,” security sources said. “Follow-up operations are continuing, with further militant casualties and losses reported.”
Separatist militants, affiliated with the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), launched attacks in several cities of Balochistan early Saturday, according to a senior police official, who requested anonymity. “Fitna-al-Hindustan carried out attacks at 12 locations across Balochistan,” the official said, adding that all attempts were repelled through prompt and effective measures. During the skirmishes, 10 security personnel were killed.
The militants also killed five members of a Baloch laborer’s family in Gwadar, including a woman and three children, according to the sources. “In addition to 10 martyrs from Security Forces and Police, the human-wolf Khawarij of Fitna Al-Hindustan (Indian-backed Baloch separatist groups) martyred 5 members of a Baloch laborer family from Khuzdar in Gwadar, including one woman and three children,” the security official said. “The attack on poor laborers shows that Fitna al-Hindustan is acting at India’s behest against Balochistan’s development and prosperity.” State-run Radio Pakistan, citing security sources, reported that security forces were still pursuing and engaging militants at multiple sites, with indications of additional militant losses and damage inflicted.
The Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility for Saturday’s attacks, according to a statement, saying its militants targeted security forces, police and civil administration officials. The BLA said the group had launched ‘Operation Herof 2.0,’ which included a series of attacks in multiple cities of Balochistan. Saturday’s attacks follow coordinated attacks carried out by the group in August 2024 in various districts of Balochistan which killed dozens of people. The separatists accuse the central government of stealing the region’s resources to fund development elsewhere in the country. The Pakistani government denies the allegations and says it is working for the uplift of local communities in Balochistan.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least populated province, has faced a low-level insurgency by Baloch separatists seeking greater autonomy or independence, alongside Islamist militancy. It borders Afghanistan and Iran and is central to China’s Belt and Road Initiative via the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. The banned BLA has conducted frequent attacks in Balochistan, targeting security forces and law enforcement. In August 2025, the United States designated the BLA and its Majeed Brigade as foreign terrorist organizations. Despite high militant deaths, Pakistan saw a 34 percent rise in terrorist attacks and 21 percent increase in related fatalities in 2025, per the Pak Institute for Peace Studies. Some 699 attacks occurred nationwide.
Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti said on the social media platform X that security forces had eliminated 70 militants across the province in the past two days. “In the morning, in an attempt to shore up their declining morale, Fitna-al-Hindustan terrorists attempted to carry out attacks at multiple locations, which the courageous police of Balochistan and brave personnel of the FC (Frontier Corps) are jointly thwarting and have killed 37 more terrorists so far,” Bugti said. “These attacks cannot undermine our resolve against terrorism; we will continue to pursue them until the last terrorist.”
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar called the assaults “a desperate move” by the militants as security forces closed in on them. “This was a desperate move by the terrorists. Our security forces are close to defeating the fighters of Fitna-al-Hindustan and Fitna-al-Khawarij,” Tarar said in an interview with a private television channel. “Our security forces, personnel and officers have fought bravely. They were alert at all sites and fully prepared,” he said. On the operations, Tarar said security forces were monitoring the situation with aerial surveillance ongoing. He reiterated that the attacks were fully thwarted. Tarar said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was briefed and in contact. “The prime minister condemned the attack and reaffirmed that we will not rest until the last terrorist is eliminated from the country,” he said. “It is the resolve of the state of Pakistan that it will not rest until terrorism is eliminated from the country. We are fully focused. The terrorists failed due to the unity of the Pakistani nation, and the entire nation stands behind the security forces.”
Bugti visited the site of a bomb blast in Quetta to assess the security situation, according to a statement from the chief minister’s office. Balochistan Inspector General Muhammad Tahir briefed the chief minister on the incident, and Bugti met with security and police personnel. “The timely response against terrorist elements is commendable,” Bugti said, praising the actions of the police and the Counter-Terrorism Department. “Anti-state elements will not be forgiven under any circumstances. There will be no compromise on peace in Balochistan.”
An emergency was declared in all government hospitals in the province on orders from Health Minister Bakht Muhammad Kakar and Health Secretary Mujeebur Rehman. Kakar oversaw medical care for those injured in the Quetta firing, according to a provincial health department statement. The health minister instructed Quetta Trauma Center Managing Director Dr Arbab Kamran and Quetta Civil Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Abdul Hadi Kakar to provide immediate medical aid. The statement said operating theaters at the Quetta Trauma Center and Civil Hospital were on alert, with extra doctors assigned. Mobile services operated, but data was suspended in Quetta, Sibi and Chaman after the attacks.
A senior official at the Civil Hospital in Quetta said they had received 15 bodies, including nine policemen. “Eight injured with bullet wounds were brought to the hospital,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “Five of them were later shifted to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Quetta.”
Separately, police reported finding suspected explosives on a railway track in Balochistan’s Nasirabad district. “An anti-tank mine and explosive material were found on the railway line near Rabi Pul,” Nasirabad Senior Superintendent of Police Asadullah Nasir said in a statement. “A suspected IED (improvised explosive device) was neutralized as the police, FC and Special Branch took timely action.” The items included half a kilogram of explosive material, petrol and an iron rod, which were passed to the Counter-Terrorism Department for probe. Railway tracks are often targeted by militants, with the Jaffar Express attacked multiple times in the past year. Most recently, on Monday night, a blast on the track linking Sindh to Balochistan derailed four bogies of the Quetta-bound Jaffar Express from Peshawar and damaged the line. The Jaffar Express also escaped attacks in Nasirabad in October and November last year, with similar attempts in Kachhi and Sindh’s Shikarpur district during those months. Pakistan Railways suspended train service from Balochistan to other parts of the country for a day, following Saturday’s attacks. “Quetta-Peshawar bound Jaffar Express, and Quetta-Chaman passenger trains have been canceled due to the prevailing security situation in Balochistan,” Muhammad Kashif, the railways controller in Quetta division, told Arab News.
President Asif Ali Zardari praised the army and law enforcement agencies for their expertise in blocking “infiltration attempts by Fitna-al-Hindustan terrorists at multiple locations.” In a statement, he paid tribute to the “security personnel and innocent civilians who embraced martyrdom during the actions” and prayed for them. “Our commitment is not to make any compromise on Balochistan’s peace, civilians’ protection, and national unity,” Zardari said. He said the state would pursue operations against “enemy elements operating under external backing and their facilitators with full force and unity.”
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif commended the security forces for foiling attempts by Fitna-al-Hindustan to disrupt peace in Balochistan, according to state-run APP. The prime minister highlighted the competence and bravery of the forces in repelling “coordinated attacks at 12 locations across Quetta, Noshki, Dalbandin, Pasni and Gwadar.” Sharif also praised the elimination of 88 leading terrorists, allegedly backed by India, in intelligence-based operations over the past 48 hours, calling it a key success against terrorism. Reaffirming his commitment, Sharif said the fight against terrorism would persist until its eradication.
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