By Staff Reporter
QUETTA: At least 39 people were killed in a series of coordinated attacks in southwestern Balochistan province, officials said Monday, in some of the worst violence to hit the region in recent years.
“We have confirmed [at least] 39 people killed in several coordinated attacks carried out by the BLA terrorists,” Shahid Rind, a spokesman for the Balochistan provincial government, told AFP.
Armed men launched three assaults overnight in remote areas of Rarasham in Musakhail district, Qalat district, and on a railway track in Bolan, leaving several injured.
In Musakhail district, armed men stopped buses and trucks, checked passengers’ IDs, and shot 23 people before setting 10 vehicles ablaze. “Vehicles travelling to and from Punjab were inspected, and individuals from Punjab were identified and shot,” Najibullah Kakar, a senior official in Musakhail, said.
All those killed were from Punjab province, officials confirmed.
In Qalat district, nine people, including four police officers and five passersby, were shot dead. “Four Levies sepoys — Ahsanullah, Ali Akbar, Rehmatullah, and Nasibullah — were among those martyred in the clashes, while police sub-inspector Huzoor Baksh, a tribal elder, and two civilians were also among those who lost their lives,” Kalat Superintendent of Police Dostain Dashti said.
Six people were killed in a railway track blast in Bolan, Kachhi Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dost Mohammad Bugti said. “According to initial reports, all individuals were killed last night. The deceased were shot dead. Their identification process has not been completed yet.”
The attacks occurred along the highway connecting Punjab with Balochistan, shortly after the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) warned people to stay away from highways in the province.
In a statement, the BLA said its fighters targeted military personnel travelling in civilian clothes, who were shot once identified. However, the interior ministry described the victims as innocent citizens.
Security forces responded to the attacks, killing 21 terrorists, according to the military’s media wing. “Security Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies immediately responded and successfully thwarted the evil design of terrorists and sent twenty-one terrorists to hell in ensuing clearance operations, ensuring security and protection of local populace,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.
The ISPR added that sanitisation operations are being conducted and the instigators, perpetrators, facilitators, and abettors of these heinous and cowardly acts, targeting innocent civilians, will be brought to justice.
“Security forces and law enforcement agencies of Pakistan in step with the nation, remain determined to thwart attempts at sabotaging peace, stability, and progress of Balochistan, and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve.”
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi vowed to “bring forward the facts along with evidence after investigations” into the attacks.
An emergency has been imposed in hospitals, and security concerns have heightened after back-to-back incidents of terrorism in the province.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least populated province, is home to the ethnic Baloch minority, who claim discrimination and exploitation by the central government, fueling a separatist insurgency demanding independence. Islamic militants also operate in the province.
The outlawed BLA, designated as a terrorist organization by Pakistan and the US, is the primary group behind the attacks. The BLA seeks a sovereign state encompassing territories in Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan.
The BLA has been emboldened by the Pakistani Taliban’s end of a ceasefire with the government in November 2022. Analysts suggest the group is operating with support from other organizations.
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