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Published 18 Apr, 2016 07:58pm

144 militants including four commanders surrender in Balochistan

QUETTA: Four commanders along with 140 other militants surrendered their arms to authorities on Monday.

The militants surrendered before the commissioner of Kalat division and law enforcement officials.

Militants who surrendered today belong to the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and other proscribed groups.

Four commanders who surrendered are Eid Muhammad of the BLA, Niaz of Baloch Liberation Front (BLF) and two others, who were not named.

The commissioner while welcoming the surrender assured the militants that the government would make efforts to rehabilitate them, with the militants claiming that they were misled by certain elements to partake in subversive activities.

Militants also vowed to adopt peaceful lives and work for stability in the province.

The government also announced amnesty for the militants adopting peaceful lives and they will be integrated in Balochistan.

Pakistan's largest province — which borders Iran and Afghanistan — is riven by sectarian strife and Islamist violence.

Its roughly seven million inhabitants have long complained they do not receive a fair share of its gas and mineral wealth.

Baloch separatists demanding more autonomy and control over gas and mineral resources have frequently targeted security forces and police for years.

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