Balochistan bleeds

QUETTA/RAWALPINDI: At least 54 people, including 10 soldiers and four law-enforcers, were martyred by terrorists in different districts of Balochistan on Sunday night and Monday, government officials said.

In a swift response, the security forces killed 21 terrorists in clearance operations in three districts of the province. The terrorists attacked police stations, paramilitary camp, and levies stations and after blocking highways at various points, they offloaded people from buses, trucks and other vehicles and shot dead 23 people, mostly belonging to south Punjab, in Musakhail district of Balochistan.

The military media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said that 21 terrorists were killed in the operation while 10 security forces soldiers and four personnel of the law-enforcement agencies (LEAs) were martyred in the operation the security forces conducted after the militant attacks.

Officials said that terrorists attacked police and levies stations in Kalat and Mastung districts and martyred 11 people including four levies personnel and a police sub-inspector in Kalat, while six bodies were found in Kolpur area of Bolan district.

The provincial capital Quetta’s railway links was cut off with the rest of the country as a British-era bridge was blown up by militants at the main railway line near Kolpur (Bolan district), which connects Balochistan with Punjab, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh. The militants also blew up another railway track near Mastung, connecting Pakistan with Iran.

All passenger trains for Punjab, Karachi, Peshawar and Chaman were cancelled while goods trains for Iran were stopped. “After rebuilding the destroyed bridge, rail service would be restored from Quetta,” Pakistan Railway officials said.

A big tragedy took place at Loralai-Dera Ghazi Khan highway where armed militants blocked the highway at Rara Shram area, stopped buses, trucks, passenger wagons and other vehicles, identified people with the help of their computerised national identity cards (CNICs), offloaded 23 people and shot them dead on-the-spot.

“We found 23 bullet riddled bodies lying on the roadside that were killed by armed men,” Ayub Achakzai, SSP Musakhail district said, adding that one injured was also found with the bodies who was hit with the bullets at his legs.

He said that people who were shot dead by armed men also include truck drivers, who were on their way to Punjab through Loralai-Dera Ghazi Khan highway, carrying coal and fruits. They set their trucks and other vehicles on fire. “As many as 35 trucks, passenger weapons, pickups and other vehicles were set on fire at Loralai-Dera Ghazi Khan highway near Rara Shram,” Achakzai added.

“Militants not only killed passengers after offloading them from buses but also killed truck drivers and burnt their trucks,” Hameed Zehri, Deputy Commissioner Musakhail district, said and added that the armed men flee before the sunrise.

“There were around 35 to 40 armed men carrying automatic weapons, who intercepted 22 vehicles near Rara Shram area and offloaded 23 people from passenger bases and other vehicles and shot them dead,” another official Mujeeb Kakar, assistant commissioner Musakhail said. “All victims received multiple bullet injuries at their heads and upper parts of the bodies,” hospital officials said and added that bodies would be sent to their native towns after identification and completing medico-legal requirements.

Some of the dead were identified as Mohammad Zameer, Mohammad Asif, Shehbaz Khan, Mohammad Waseem, Qadeer Aslam, Asif Iqbal, Javed Moaish, Ghulam Jilani, Khuda Bakhsh and Ghulam Murtaza.

Officials said that armed terrorists blocked many highways, including Mastung, Kalat, Bela, Turbat, Panjgur, Coastal highway and many other areas. A group of militants blocked Quetta-Karachi highway near Khadkocha area and stormed the Thana. They held hostage the levies personnel present in the Thana. The armed men stayed for several hours in the levies Thana and fled when security forces reached and started action against them. However, before leaving they set the Thana on fire, destroying all record and furniture.

Armed men also attacked levies station, two hotels, and the house of a tribal elder and set the Toll plaza on fire at national highway. Officials said that in the exchange of fire, 11 people were killed, while nine others including Assistant Commissioner Kalat Aftab Lasi were injured. Eleven people lost their lives, including four levies personnel, a sub-inspector of police and six civilians.

Security officials also recovered six more bodies of civilians and two injured in Kolpur area of Bolan district. “They were also shot and killed by militants,” security officials said, adding that the bodies and injured were shifted to Civil Hospital Quetta.

Officials said that armed militants also attacked the camp of the Frontier Corps in Bela area of Lasbela district where heavy fighting was reported. The militants blew off the main gate of the FC camp crashing an explosive-laden vehicle and entered the camp.

The ISPR said that terrorists attempted to conduct numerous heinous activities in Balochistan. On behest of inimical and hostile forces, these cowardly acts of terrorism were aimed at disrupting the peaceful environment and development of Balochistan by targeting mainly innocent civilians, especially in Musakhail, Kalat and Lasbela districts. Resultantly, numerous innocent civilians embraced shahadat.

“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 statement said, issued on Monday evening.

“However, during the conduct of operations, fourteen brave sons of soil including 10 security forces soldiers and four personnel of law-enforcement agencies, having fought gallantly, made the ultimate sacrifice and embraced shahadat,” added the statement.

“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,” the statement said.

Banned Baloch Liberation claimed responsibility for the attacks and killings and said that Majeed brigade of BLA carried out the attacks. They said two suicide bombers including a female crashed their vehicle with the main gate of the FC camp in Bela. They released their picture on social media and identified them as Mahal Baloch alias Zalan Kurd, a resident of Sur-Bunder of Gwadar district, while Rizwan Baloch alias Hammal, son of Mola Bakhsh, resident of Panwan Gwadar.

In a statement issued by his ministry on social media platform X, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi 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 well-thought-out plan,” Naqvi said. Vowing to take “every possible step” to restore law and order in Balochistan, the minister asserted: “Terrorists and their enablers would not be able to find a place to hide.”

Naqvi said he was in contact with the Balochistan government and that effective steps were being taken to “maintain an atmosphere of peace” in the province. “If someone thinks that by such cowardly acts, they can defeat the nation’s unwavering determination, they are mistaken,” Naqvi said.

He added that the law and order situation in Balochistan was being monitored on a regular basis. President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the terrorist attack, saying such acts of terrorism were unacceptable, Radio Pakistan reported. Expressing grief and sorrow over the loss of precious lives in the incident, they prayed for the departed souls and condoled with the bereaved families.

President Zardari said the “brutal killing of innocent people was the killing of the entire humanity” and called for the culprits to be brought to justice.

PM Shehbaz directed the local administration to fully cooperate with the bereaved families and provide medical aid to the injured. He also directed the law enforcement agencies to investigate the incident immediately.

“The terrorists behind this incident will face severe punishment,” the premier vowed, adding that any form of terrorism is unacceptable in the country. Both the president and the prime minister expressed Pakistan’s “unwavering commitment” to eradicate the menace of terrorism.

Meanwhile, Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti also strongly condemned the incident. He said that these were not instances of Baloch killing Punjabis, because a terrorist has no religion or nationality. He said, in fact, terrorists had killed Pakistanis on Sunday night.

He made these remarks during a press conference at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat on Monday evening, alongside provincial ministers Mir Zahoor Ahmed Buledi, Haji Ali Madad Jattak, Raheela Hameed Khan Durrani, Mir Asim Kurd Gello, and assembly members Malik Naeem Ahmed Bazai and Asfandyar Khan Kakar.

He expressed heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the families of those who died in the cowardly act of terrorists, according to a statement issued from his office.

“Terrorists and their facilitators will not be able to escape an exemplary end,” he said, adding that the Balochistan government would pursue the terrorists.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar vehemently denounced the brutality of the terrorists. “Terrorists showed brutality by targeting innocent passengers near Musakhail,” he was quoted as saying in a statement on X posted by PMLN. Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori termed the incident worrying, saying: “No matter how much this incident is condemned, it is not enough. “Killing passengers by offloading them from the bus is the worst kind of brutality,” he said in a statement on X.

Meanwhile, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari expressed profound sorrow and respect for the 14 young soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice while battling terrorists at various locations.