QUETTA, Pakistan—More than 60 people have died as a consequence of terrorist assaults on police stations, railroads, and highways in Balochistan, Pakistan's unrest-plagued region, authorities announced on Monday. The attacks were followed by security forces' counter actions.
Part of a decades-long campaign to seek independence of the resource-rich southwestern province—home to significant China-led projects including a vital port and a gold and copper mine—ethnic militants launched their most extensive attack in recent memory.
“These attacks are a well thought out plan to create anarchy in Pakistan,” Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said in a statement, adding that security forces had killed 12 terrorists in operations after the attacks on Sunday and Monday.
The worst attack, which targeted buses and cargo trucks on a key route, claimed the lives of 14 Pakistani soldiers and police as well as 21 militants.
Whether it includes the 12 terrorists the interior ministry said were deceased was not immediately apparent.
According to local police, the attack resulted in the deaths of at least 23 people and the burning of 35 automobiles.
Following explosions on a rail bridge connecting the province capital to the rest of Pakistan and on a rail connection to neighboring Iran, train service with Quetta was halted, according to railways official Muhammad Kashif.
Six victims that have not yet been recognized have been discovered, according to police, close to the railway bridge assault location.
Balochistan is the largest province in Pakistan by land. According to officials, terrorists also attacked police and security facilities there, killing at least ten people in a single strike.
Although Pakistani officials have not yet confirmed these claims, terrorist organization the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) accepted credit in a message to media, claiming many more assaults, including one on a significant paramilitary base.
The largest of multiple terrorist organizations with ethnic roots, the BLA has been fighting the government of Balochistan for decades, claiming that it is unfairly taking advantage of the country's mineral and gas riches. It calls for the province's independence and the eviction of China.
Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister, promised that security forces will strike back and prosecute anyone involved.
Pakistan's army chief, Asim Munir, met with General Li Qiaoming, commander of the People's Liberation Army Ground Forces in China on Monday; nevertheless, a statement from the Pakistani military made no reference of the assaults.
“The meeting afforded an opportunity for in-depth discussions on matters of mutual interest, regional security, military training, and measures to further augment bilateral defence cooperation,” it said.
According to deputy superintendent of police Ayub Achakzai, Reuters was informed by armed men on Sunday night that they had halted a highway in Balochistan, forced passengers out of their cars, and then shot them after verifying their identity cards.
In the vicinity of Musakhail, up to 35 cars—including trucks—were set on fire on the highway.
“The armed men also not only killed passengers but also killed the drivers of trucks carrying coal,” said Hameed Zahir, deputy commissioner of the area.
Workers from Punjab's eastern province have been the target of terrorist attacks because they believe they are abusing their resources.
They have previously assaulted Chinese nationals and interests in the province, which is home to a gold and copper mine to the west of the province and the strategically important deepwater port of Gawadar, both of which are controlled by the Chinese communist dictatorship.
According to the BLA, its militants shot military men who were traveling in civilian attire after identifying them.
According to Pakistan's interior minister, the deceased were law-abiding individuals.
Ten people were murdered in fighting with armed terrorists who broke into a Balochistan Levies station in Kalat's central region. The victims included six security officers, three civilians, and one tribal elder, according to police spokesman Dostain Khan Dashti.
Although the number of casualties was unknown, officials reported that police stations in two coastal towns in the south had also been targeted.
Pakistan's biggest province in terms of area, Balochistan borders both Afghanistan and Iran. Despite this, it is the least populous, mainly undeveloped, and has high rates of poverty.
