The series of coordinated attacks across Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province also left at least 31 civilians and 17 security personnel dead.
Pakistani security forces on Sunday searched for separatists behind a series of coordinated gun and bomb attacks across the southwestern Balochistan province.
Troops were sweeping the area a day after multiple assaults were launched on security forces, civilians and infrastructure, according to Chief Minister of Balochistan Sarfraz Bugti. About a dozen sites remained sealed off.
The series of attacks left at least 31 civilians and 17 security personnel dead, he said, adding that at least 145 attackers were killed.
“We had intelligence reports that this kind of operation was being planned, and as a result of those, we started pre-operations a day before,” Bugti said.
For decades, Pakistan has been battling a Baloch separatist insurgency in the Balochistan province, which shares borders with Afghanistan and Iran.
Waves of coordinated attacks across Balochistan
The attackers, disguised as civilians, entered hospitals, schools, banks, and markets on Saturday before opening fire, Pakistan’s junior Interior Minister Talal Chaudhry said.
“In each case, the attackers came in dressed as civilians and indiscriminately targeted ordinary people working in shops,” he said, adding militants had used civilians as human shields.
At a news conference in Quetta on Sunday, Bugti said that all the districts under attack were cleared on Sunday.
“We are chasing them, we will not let them go so easily,” said Bugti. “Our blood is not that cheap. We will chase them until their hideouts.”
Who is behind the Balochistan attacks?
The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), the province’s most active militant separatist group, claimed responsibility for the attacks.
The BLA, which the United States has designated a terrorist organization, said it had targeted security forces in gun attacks and suicide bombings across Balochistan.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who traveled to Quetta late Saturday to attend funerals, alleged without providing evidence that the attackers were backed by India.
On Sunday, Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif also echoed similar accusations at a news conference and pledged to “completely eliminate these terrorists.”
India denied any involvement, accusing Islamabad of deflecting “attention from its own internal failings.”
“We categorically reject the baseless allegations made by Pakistan,” Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement, adding that Islamabad should instead address “long-standing demands of its people in the region.”
The United States condemned “acts of terrorist violence against security personnel and civilians.”
Washington “remains a steadfast partner of Pakistan in its efforts to ensure peace and stability,” said US Charge d’Affaires Natalie Baker.
Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko
DW News
