After the Pakistan Army had failed to curb violence in Balochistan and the separatists almost captured the entire restive province, is Punjab following the footsteps of the area?
Are Baloch separatists and nationalist forces like the Balochistan Liberation Army spreading their wings and making inroads into the neighbouring province despite different ethnicities? These questions are being asked after the BLA insurgents offloaded nine passengers from buses and shot them down. The attack was so chilling that the armed militants stopped two Punjab-bound buses, checked the ID cards of travelers, asked them to get down and sprayed bullets at them. Confirming the tragic incident, Assistant Commissioner Naveed Alam of Zhob told reporters that it occurred on Thursday night on the national highway in the Sur-Dakai area of Zhob district.
The seriousness of the tragic incident can be understood by the fact that the BLA has claimed responsibility of the attack and said that every talk of a ceasefire from Pakistan is a deception. On the other hand, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfaraz Bugti said that the killing of innocents based on identity is an “unforgivable crime” and the terrorists have shown that they are not human beings, they are beasts.
Multiple insurgent attacks
(BLA militants targetes bus passengers)
However, this is not the first time that the BLA insurgents have killed Punjabi civilians. It also shows that the BLA is expanding its area of operations, making inroads into other provinces and carrying out attacks at their will. According to news agency PTI, the insurgents also carried out attacks at three different places in Quetta, Loralai, and Mastung. Confirming these attacks, Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind claimed that the security forces had repulsed these attacks. Local media reports suggest that the Baloch insurgents struck at several places in the province during the night and engaged security forces. They attacked check posts, government installations, police stations, banks, and communication towers.
Where is Balochistan?
Situated in the southwestern region of Pakistan, Balochistan is the largest province of the South Asian country by land area. Bordered by the Pakistani provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the north-east, Punjab to the east, and Sindh to the south-east, it shares international borders with Iran to the west and Afghanistan to the north. The rugged mountainous area is also bound by the Arabian Sea to the south, with a large deep-sea port, the Port of Gwadar.