Quetta: A heavily-armed unit of the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) has carried out a coordinated assault on a security post in the Ziarat district of the province, killing 17 police personnel, including two Station House Officers (SHOs).
This brings back violence between the rebels and government forces in the restive province after a brief lull.
The armed rebels targeted a police installation guarding the strategically vital Mangi Dam project, it has been reported. The BLA swiftly claimed responsibility for the ambush, underscoring the deep-seated security challenges plaguing Pakistan’s southwestern province, as reported by News18.
The attackers took cover of darkness to strike. What followed was a prolonged and intense gunbattle as the rebels overwhelmed the outpost. Alongside the heavy loss of life, initial administrative reports indicate that multiple officers suffered severe injuries during the clash.
The situation has been further complicated by the disappearance of fifteen additional policemen, who are currently reported missing and are feared to have been taken hostage by the BLA.
The casualties were extracted and the bodies of the police personnel were formally dispatched to their ancestral towns following a sombre wreath-laying ceremony in Quetta.
Pakistan’s security forces – comprising a joint task force of paramilitary troops, local police, and counter-terrorism personnel-launched a massive, sweeping search operation across the rugged terrain surrounding the Mangi Dam area and the broader Ziarat district after the attack.
The aim of this multi-agency clearance team is to track down the perpetrators and secure the safe recovery of the missing officers.
The government has condemned the ambush as a cowardly attempt to sabotage regional peace and disrupt critical infrastructure development.
For years, Balochistan has served as the theatre for a persistent separatist movement, with outfits like the BLA frequently executing high-impact operations against state forces, energy networks, and foreign-funded infrastructure assets across the mineral-rich territory.
