Militants launch ‘coordinated’ attacks across Balochistan

KABUL (Pajhwok): Separatist militants affiliated with the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) launched coordinated attacks across several parts of Balochistan on Saturday, according to media reports.

In the provincial capital, Quetta, the attacks began around 6:00 a.m. with a powerful explosion, followed by intense gunfire and multiple blasts that continued for nearly two hours, Arab News reported.

Residents in Dalbandin and Nushki said they heard explosions and gunfire early Saturday morning. Similar attacks were also reported in Mastung, Gwadar, Pasni, and Turbat.

A senior police official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arab News that militants attempted to enter Quetta but were repelled by police and other law enforcement agencies.

Shahid Rind, the media and political aide to the chief minister of Balochistan, said that the BLA attempted to carry out attacks at several locations in Balochistan after, according to his claim, dozens of its members were killed in operations by the country’s security forces over the past two days.

sa