Introduction
In the latest flare-up of violence in Pakistan, dozens of militants affiliated with the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) launched a well-coordinated wave of attacks on the night of 25/26 August across Balochistan, targeting both security personnel and civilians. The date is significant as it marks the anniversary of Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Shahbaz Khan Bugti’s death at the hands of Security Forces on August 26, 2006, in his cave.
At least 50 people, including 14 security personnel, lost their lives as militants went on a rampage across the province. They stormed police stations, blew up railway tracks and a crucial bridge, and set fire to nearly three dozen vehicles, including trucks loaded with coal and fruit. They attacked police stations, a paramilitary camp in Bela, Levies stations, and blocked key roads, including the Coastal Highway. In Khadkocha, a group of militants stormed the local police station and took Levies officials hostage for several hours. They managed to escape after security forces arrived on the scene but not before setting the premises on fire.
In Kalat, militants attacked a Levies station and set fire to a toll plaza on the national highway. In Lasbela, the militants stormed a Frontier Corps camp by ramming an explosive-laden vehicle into the main gate and entering the premises under heavy gunfire. Among the casualties were 23 people in Musakhail, mostly labourers from Punjab, who were offloaded from trucks and vans and shot dead after an identity check.
The BLA claimed responsibility for the attacks. In a statement, the group said that the Majeed Brigade carried out the attacks, including two suicide bombings—one involving a female attacker—targeting the FC camp in Bela. The pictures of the bombers were released on the BLA’s social media platform.
Pakistan’s Response
In response, security forces claimed to have neutralised 21 militants. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited Quetta and chaired a high-level meeting of the National Action Plan’s Provincial Apex Committee, which included the Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, as well as other top government and security officials.
He stated, “There has been a wave of great concern among the people across Pakistan due to the recent heartrending incident that occurred in Balochistan.” He went on to assert, “However, I think that at the moment, we have to decide that we must fully eradicate terrorism from Balochistan through our collective vision, power, and unwavering determination,” highlighting that the province was “extremely important and beautiful”, and stressed the need to remove “all obstacles from its path to progress”. He vowed to root out “terrorism that has surged again since 2018” not only from Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but from the entire country.
On August 27, Prime Minister Sharif had said that talks could be held with those who “acknowledged Pakistan’s Constitution and flag”, but there could be no dialogue with terrorists. This statement clearly acknowledges solutions that lie beyond a kinetic response.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore that the decision to launch the Azm-i-Istehkam operation in Balochistan was a tricky matter, but added that the political leadership would decide in a few days. He said that a tit-for-tat response would be given to terrorists, alongside seeking a political solution.
The truth remains that similar resolutions have been made in the past regarding Balochistan. Yet, the recent attacks have shown that the separatist threat has grown in both lethality and reach. Furthermore, the violence indicates an intelligence failure of significant proportions. The assaults were not confined to a limited area but occurred at multiple locations across Balochistan. In fact, their sophistication points to a high level of coordination and planning.
What Fuelled the Growth of Baloch Militancy
While there is unanimity regarding the state’s right to use force to combat terrorism, there is also a need to address the root causes of the political unrest that fuels the insurgency. Despite resorting to kinetic measures, Pakistan has failed to contain the insurgency.
In fact, the increasing alienation of the Baloch population, due to the deprivation of democratic and economic rights, the use of force to suppress protests, and the growing incidents of enforced disappearances, has fuelled anger, particularly among the youth. This has provided separatist groups with more sympathisers and recruits. There is no doubt that the failure to address the genuine demands of the Baloch people has resulted in the rise of such attacks.
Tariq Khosa, a police officer who served in Balochistan and was the Director General of the Federal Investigation Agency, wrote an article before this incident on how state atrocities turned Dr Allah Nazar, a gold medallist from Bolan Medical College, into a dissident. He also described how the leadership of Baloch dissidents passed from Tribal Sardars like the Marris, Mengals, and Bugtis to the lower-middle and middle-class youth. The policy of persecution turned a young doctor, Mahrang Baloch, whose father was murdered, into a leading human rights activist against alleged enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. Opposing violence, she has stated that “the solution to the Balochistan conundrum lies in the rule of law, which those in power don’t want because chaos strengthens their grip on power.”
Furthermore, the massive rigging carried out in the February 8 elections in Balochistan has led to anger at the blatant misuse of authority and corruption by those who conducted the polls, leading to an erosion of the state’s writ.
In his article in Dawn, Tariq Khosa wrote about citizens “feeling that the social contract between them and the state is on the verge of collapse.” He argued that the “national purpose, postulated through constitutional frameworks and based on the rule of law, justice, and equity, no longer holds them together” and that “the state seems to have lost its narrative of national cohesion due to the follies of those who wield actual power in the province.”
The leader of the Baloch Liberation Front, Allah Nazar, had earlier been detained by intelligence agencies in 2005. His brother was killed while in illegal custody. The continuing enforced disappearances and the dumping of tortured dead bodies are pushing many of the victims’ family members towards militancy. Even those who have been peacefully protesting against state excesses are branded as traitors.
There are also concerns among many Baloch regarding ‘developmental’ projects like CPEC and mining rights. For example, Gwadar’s historic fishing communities have seen their livelihoods destroyed by corporate trawlers, while the wider population has been exploited by state and private profiteers, with the province receiving very little in terms of royalties for its mineral wealth.
The current round of insurgency in Balochistan has raged for almost two decades and was originally triggered by the regime of General Pervez Musharraf, who had ominously announced, “They won’t know what hit them.” The flawed approach of the security apparatus is largely responsible for the present state of affairs.
It is apparent that Baloch militants are now better organised and appear to have a stronger support base, allowing them to operate more effectively. The attacks have also occurred in a region that has long been the epicentre of political discontent. The province is rapidly turning into a full-blown insurrection, driven by the growing alienation of the local population. The government is now being challenged by people’s power, as demonstrated by recent protest marches in Gwadar and Turbat. These latest high-profile militant attacks occurred following weeks of mass protests in Southern Balochistan.
Way Forward
Implementing an effective strategy to counter the insurgency requires a multi-pronged approach that combines military, intelligence, and law enforcement operations with political and socioeconomic measures. To restore peace in its restive provinces, Pakistan’s leaders need a whole-of-government approach that focuses on all aspects simultaneously in a mutually supportive manner, addressing the many dimensions fuelling these conflicts.
Domestic insurgencies require political solutions, as they involve issues concerning the nature and legitimacy of governance over a particular territory and the aspirations of the people who inhabit it. Human rights abuses, disappearances, and staged encounters often do more harm than good, agitating the population and potentially being counterproductive, undermining the very institutions they aim to protect. However, instead of introspection, historian Ishtiaq Ahmed has described it as “a declaration of war on Pakistan by the BLA” and stated on social media that a separatist movement can only succeed when it is supported by “a powerful neighbour”.
Geography also plays a significant role in the situation. The unsettled border with Afghanistan and the fact that the Taliban 2.0 is no longer a puppet of Pakistan have allowed groups like the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and TTP to seek refuge in Iran and Afghanistan when the pressure mounts. This sanctuary gives them time to regroup. The TTP’s ability to reconstitute itself in Afghanistan after being routed by the Pakistani military further demonstrates that geography makes a purely military victory impossible.
Unfortunately, while Pakistan feels the impact of terrorism on its western border and makes statements about the ‘elimination of all forms of terrorism,’ it behaves quite differently when it comes to its eastern border with India, particularly in J&K and Punjab. As a result, such statements hold little weight, as Pakistan’s actions often contradict its words.
Conclusion
While the latest surge in violence demonstrates the growing capacity of separatist groups to carry out high-profile terrorist attacks, it also raises questions about the state’s failure to address the serious security challenge extending from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) to Balochistan.
Both of Pakistan’s strategically located western provinces have become battlegrounds for diverse militant groups challenging the writ of the state. In KP, the conflict is primarily waged by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), while Balochistan faces challenges from various Baloch ethnonationalist groups.
While the security forces are engaged with the TTP, which seeks to enforce Taliban rule in parts of KP, the Baloch separatist organisations have expanded their operations. The latest surge in violence has highlighted the vulnerability of an increasingly fragmented state. The significant toll of casualties suffered by the security forces underscores the gravity of the situation. As Aasim Sajjad Akhtar noted in Dawn, “Balochistan has bled for so long that the mainstream Pakistani consciousness has tuned it into the background.”
In conflict, success is achieved by diminishing an enemy’s capacity and will to fight. However, in an insurgency, the will to fight is largely political and social, rooted in perceived injustices committed by the government or its lack of legitimacy and competence. Addressing these underlying issues can lead to stability; until then, the insurgency represents a failure of the Pakistani state.
The author is an Army veteran. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18’s views.
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