By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Australia on Friday imposed counterterrorism financing sanctions on the Balochistan Liberation Army and three of its senior leaders, freezing their assets and prohibiting any financial dealings with the group in a move aimed at disrupting its operations in Pakistan.
The sanctions, announced by the office of Foreign Minister Penny Wong, mark the latest international effort to isolate the Balochistan Liberation Army, a militant separatist organization that Pakistani officials have long accused of orchestrating a campaign of violence targeting civilians, security forces, infrastructure and foreign interests.
“The Australian Government has today imposed counter-terrorism financing sanctions on the Balochistan Liberation Army and three senior leaders for their engagement in and support of terrorist attacks,” the statement from Wong’s office said. It described the group as one that “has conducted violent terror attacks across Pakistan,” adding that “these appalling attacks have targeted civilians, critical infrastructure, and foreign nationals, as well as the Pakistani state.”
The statement emphasized that the sanctions are intended to “cut off financial support of terrorists, making it harder for them to fund operations, recruit and spread their harmful ideology.” It reaffirmed Australia’s “unwavering” commitment to counterterrorism and violent extremism, noting that Canberra would continue working with international partners “to confront and dismantle the networks that fuel threats to our security.”
Under Australian law, it is a criminal offense to use or deal with the assets of a sanctioned person or entity or to make assets available to them. Violations carry heavy fines and potential prison terms of up to 10 years. The decision aligns Australia with previous actions by the United States. Last August, Washington designated the Balochistan Liberation Army and its Majeed Brigade faction as a foreign terrorist organization and added the Majeed Brigade as an alias to the group’s existing listing as a specially designated global terrorist entity.
Pakistan welcomed that step at the time, citing the group’s involvement in multiple attacks, including the hijacking of the Jaffar Express train. That March 2025 assault saw militants seize control of a passenger train carrying more than 400 people. Pakistani security forces launched an operation the next day that killed all 33 attackers. Pakistan has repeatedly pressed for broader international action against the group.
In February, its ambassador to the United Nations, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, urged the U.N. Security Council to designate the Balochistan Liberation Army under the 1267 sanctions regime, which targets individuals and entities linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. “We hope the council will act swiftly to designate BLA under the 1267 sanctions regime, acceding to the listing request that is currently under consideration,” Ahmad told a Security Council briefing on threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts.
The Australian sanctions come months after a surge of violence in Balochistan province. In January, the group launched coordinated attacks across 12 towns, according to Pakistani officials. Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti told a news conference in Quetta on Feb. 1 that the assaults, which struck Quetta, Mastung, Nushki, Dalbandin, Kharan, Panjgur, Tump, Gwadar and Pasni, were carried out by terrorists affiliated with what he described as an “India-sponsored” network called Fitna al-Hindustan.
The attacks killed at least 22 security personnel and 36 civilians, Pakistani authorities said. A subsequent counterterrorism operation by security forces left more than 190 militants dead. Pakistan has lobbied governments and international bodies for years to proscribe the Balochistan Liberation Army, which it has long described as a banned terrorist organization responsible for some of the country’s most high-profile attacks. Friday’s announcement from Canberra represents a tangible diplomatic victory for Islamabad in its campaign to isolate the group financially and politically.
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