• 23 identified as passengers from Punjab executed in Musakhail; 6 bodies found in Bolan; 7 killed in Kalat
• 14 soldiers, police martyred while responding to terrorist attacks
• Dozens of vehicles torched; railway bridge, tracks blown up; BLA claims responsibility
• Militants storm paramilitary camp in Bela; ISPR says ‘21 terrorists’ killed in operations
• CM Bugti rules out talks, vows to crush militancy; Naqvi promises ‘tit-for-tat response’, political solution

QUETTA: At least 50 people, including 14 security men, lost their lives in different parts of restive Balochistan as dozens of militants affiliated with the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) — a separatist outfit — went on a rampage across the province, storming police stations, blowing up railway tracks, and setting fire to almost three dozen vehicles.

In subsequent operations, the armed forces’ media wing said 21 militants were neutralised by the security forces as Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi vowed to crush terrorism in the province.

In the latest flare of violence, the militants launched numerous attacks on Sunday midnight, targeting security personnel as well as civilians, particularly those hailing from Punjab.

They attacked police stations, a paramilitary camp in Bela, Levies stations, and blo­cked key roads, including Coastal Highway.

In Musakhail, a district on the border with Punjab, the militants shot dead 23 people after checking their identity documents.

“We found 23 bullet-riddled bodies lying by a roadside,” Ayub Achakzai, Musakhail SSP told Dawn. He added that among the dead bodies, a person who was shot in the legs was rescued.

Besides passengers, the victims included truck drivers who were on their way to Punjab via the Loralai-Dera Ghazi Khan Highway.

The trucks loaded with coal and fruits were set on fire by the militants.

“As many as 35 trucks, passenger vehicles, pick-ups and other vehicles were set on fire on the highway near Rara Sham,” SSP Achakzai said.

Musakhail Assistant Commissioner Mujeeb Kakar said about 35 to 40 assailants armed with automatic weapons intercepted dozens of vehicles and pulled 23 travellers from buses before shooting them dead on the basis of their ethnic identity.

In Khadkocha, a group of militants after blocking the highway stormed the local police station and took Levies officials hostage for several hours. They managed to esc­ape after security forces arrived at the scene but not before setting the premises on fire.

In Kalat, militants attacked a Levies station, two hotels, and the residence of a tribal elder besides setting alight a toll plaza on the national highway.

In the exchange of fire, 11 people, including four Levies officials and a police sub-inspector, lost their lives whereas nine people, including Kalat Assistant Commissioner Aftab Lasi, were injured.

In Bolan’s Kolpur area, six bodies were recovered. Security officials believed they were also shot dead by militants.

In Lasbela, the militants stormed a camp of the Frontier Corps after ramming an explosive-laden vehicle into the main gate and entered the premises under the cover of heavy gunfire.

Similarly, militants blocked several highways in Mastung, Kalat, Bela, Turbat, and Panjgur in addition to the all-important Coastal Highway, which connects Karachi with Gwadar. The militants blew up a railway bridge near Kolpur, cutting off Quetta from the rest of the country and another track near Mastung, disconnecting the rail link with Iran.

Subsequently, all passenger trains to Punjab, Karachi, Peshawar, and Chaman were cancelled while goods trains for Iran were also stopped.

‘14 martyred’

In a statement on Monday, the Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR) said “21 terrorists” were killed while 14 soldiers, including four law enforcers, embraced martyrdom.

“Security forces and law enforcement agencies immediately responded and successfully thwarted the evil design(s) of terrorists and sent twenty-one terrorists to hell in ensuing clearance operations, ensuring security and protection of local populace,” the ISPR said. “However, during the conduct of operations, fourteen brave sons of the soil, including ten security forces soldiers, and four personnel of law enforcement agencies, having fought gallantly, made the ultimate sacrifice and embraced shahadat.” The military’s media wing said sanitisation operations were being conducted and the instigators, perpetrators, facilitators, and abettors of these heinous and cowardly acts, targeting innocent civilians, would be brought to justice.

Meanwhile, the banned BLA claimed responsibility for the attacks. In a statement, the banned outfit said the Majeed brigade carried out the attacks and two suicide bombers, including a female attack­­er, targeted the FC camp in Bela.

The pictures of the bombers were released on its social media site and they were identified as Mahal Baloch alias Zalan Kurd, a resident of Gwadar district, and Rizwan Baloch alias Hammal, also a resident of Gwadar.

Bugti, Naqvi denounce attacks

CM Bugti condemned the incident and expressed heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the families of those who died in the attacks.

“The terrorists and their facilitators will not be able to escape an exemplary end,” he said in a statement. The Balochistan government will pursue these terrorists, he added.

Meanwhile, in a press conference at the CM Secretariat, Sarfraz Bugti claimed the militants used 4G internet to spread their message and suggested that there should be a debate in the provincial assembly on the matter. He said family members of BLA chief Bashir Zeb were government employees and it was now time for them to decide if they were with the state or the separatists.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, through a statement posted by his ministry of ‘X’, formerly Twitter, vowed to “bring forward the facts along with evidence after investigations” into the attacks.

“These destructive incidents are a conspiracy to create instability in Pakistan. The enemy wants to create anarchy in the country under a plan,” Mr Naqvi claimed.

Vowing to take “every possible step” to restore law and order in Balochistan, the minister asserted: “The terrorists and their enablers will not be able to find a place to hide.”

“If someone thinks that by such cowardly acts, they can defeat the nation’s unwavering determination, they are mistaken,” he said.

Separately, the interior minister told reporters in Lahore that the decision to launch the Azm-i-Istehkam operation in Balochistan was a tricky matter, but added that the political leadership would decide in a few days. He said that a tit-for-tat response would be given to terrorists, besides seeking a political solution, APP added.

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2024