QUETTA: Seven soldiers, including a junior commissioned officer, were martyred in a bomb blast and an exchange of fire with militants in Balochistan on Monday night.

Official sources said that six soldiers of the Frontier Corps embraced martyrdom in the Pir Ghaib area between Mach and Dhadhar in Bolan district when an improvised explosive device went off near the vehicle in which they were travelling.

Sources said that the vehicle blew up in the explosion and the six soldiers lost their lives on the spot.

“They were returning to their base from the Pir Ghaib area after routine patrolling when they came under IED attack late on Monday night,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) confirmed in a statement on Tuesday. It said that a junior commissioned officer and a civilian driver also embraced martyrdom in the blast.

“Six Frontier Corps personnel were killed in a roadside bomb blast while four others received injuries and have been sent to hospital,” Deputy Commissioner of Bolan Murad Kasi told AFP.

The bomb hit the vehicle during a routine patrol, he added.

Soon after receiving information, FC troops rushed to the site and shifted the bodies to nearby health facilities.

The ISPR identified the martyrs as Naib Subedar Ihsanullah, Naik Zubair Khan, Naik Ijaz Ahmed, Naik Maula Bakhsh, Naik Noor Mohammad and driver Abdul Jabbar.

In another incident, a soldier was martyred during an exchange of fire with militants in the Mand area of Kech district, Makran division, the ISPR said. He was identified as Imdad Ali.

Sources said that security forces had launched search operations in both areas to trace out the militants involved in the incidents.

Meanwhile, hours after the first attack on the troops Mureed Baloch, a spokesman for the outlawed United Baloch Army, claimed res­ponsibility for it, reported the Associated Press.

In a statement, he said the group targeted the soldiers assigned to protect engineers of an oil and gas facility in the region.

Earlier this month, another militant group targeted troops with a roadside bomb in an area of Balochistan near Iran’s border, killing six soldiers, including an army major, AP added.

Balochistan has for years been the scene of a low-level insurgency by militants who allege discrimination and demand a fairer share of the province’s resources and wealth.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2020

Opinion

Editorial

Military option
Updated 21 Nov, 2024

Military option

While restoring peace is essential, addressing Balochistan’s socioeconomic deprivation is equally important.
HIV/AIDS disaster
21 Nov, 2024

HIV/AIDS disaster

A TORTUROUS sense of déjà vu is attached to the latest health fiasco at Multan’s Nishtar Hospital. The largest...
Dubious pardon
21 Nov, 2024

Dubious pardon

IT is disturbing how a crime as grave as custodial death has culminated in an out-of-court ‘settlement’. The...
Islamabad protest
Updated 20 Nov, 2024

Islamabad protest

As Nov 24 draws nearer, both the PTI and the Islamabad administration must remain wary and keep within the limits of reason and the law.
PIA uncertainty
20 Nov, 2024

PIA uncertainty

THE failed attempt to privatise the national flag carrier late last month has led to a fierce debate around the...
T20 disappointment
20 Nov, 2024

T20 disappointment

AFTER experiencing the historic high of the One-day International series triumph against Australia, Pakistan came...