RAWALPINDI (The Thursday Times) — Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations said that security forces have killed at least 133 terrorists in Balochistan after foiling a series of coordinated attacks that it described as foreign-directed and aimed at destabilising the province.
According to ISPR, terrorists linked to Indian-sponsored Fitna al Hindustan launched near-simultaneous assaults on 31 January in and around Quetta, Mastung, Nushki, Dalbandin, Kharan, Panjgur, Tump, Gwadar and Pasni. The attacks, officials said, were intended to disrupt daily life and development in Pakistan’s largest province.
ISPR said attackers deliberately targeted civilians in Gwadar and Kharan, killing eighteen people, including women, children, elderly residents and labourers. Officials characterised the violence as calculated attempts to spread fear among local communities.
Security forces and law enforcement agencies, operating on heightened alert, responded swiftly. After prolonged and intense engagements and broad clearance operations across multiple districts, ISPR said ninety-two terrorists, including three suicide bombers, were killed, thwarting what it described as an “evil design” and preventing further casualties.
Fifteen members of Pakistan’s security forces were also killed during the operations. ISPR said those personnel fought with “exceptional bravery” during close-quarters engagements and standoffs.
Sanitisation operations continue in affected areas, with ISPR adding that those responsible for planning, facilitating and carrying out the attacks will be pursued and brought to justice. Intelligence assessments, officials said, indicate that the attacks were orchestrated and directed by terrorists leaders operating from outside Pakistan, who remained in direct contact with the attackers throughout the incidents.
ISPR said that on 30 January, fourty one terrorists linked to Fitna al Hindustan and Fitna al Khwarij were killed in separate operations in Panjgur and Harnai. With the latest operations, the total number of terrorists killed in Balochistan over the past two days has reached 133.
Security forces and law enforcement agencies said counterterrorism operations would continue under the national security framework “Azm-e-Istehkam”, approved by the Federal Apex Committee under the National Action Plan, as part of a sustained campaign to eliminate foreign-sponsored militancy.
