Balochistan [Pakistan], September 18 (ANI): The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) on Tuesday released details of 13 operations it claimed were carried out across Balochistan between September 7 and 13, claiming that 43 Pakistani military personnel and members of alleged state-backed “death squads” were killed and several others injured, according to a report by The Balochistan Post (TBP).
In its weekly statement, BLA spokesperson Jeeyand Baloch said the operations were conducted in Basima, Kharan, Panjgur, Chagai, Tump, Surab, Killa Abdullah, Lasbela, Jiwani and Mashkel. According to TBP, the targets included Pakistani military convoys, checkpoints and surveillance equipment, alleged “death squad” members, commercial vehicles, bridges and a lithium extraction project.
The BLA said its fighters seized weapons and vehicles, destroyed infrastructure and maintained blockades on key highways as part of what it calls an “economic blockade”. The group also confirmed that 10 of its fighters were killed, including eight during clashes in Basima and Killa Abdullah and two in an earlier clash in Panjgur.
According to the statement cited by TBP, the operations began on September 7 with a five-hour blockade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor route in Basima, where BLA fighters reportedly conducted snap checks.
The BLA claimed that five Pakistani military personnel were killed and several others injured during clashes at the location. It said three of its fighters were also killed in the fighting, On September 8, BLA fighters reportedly ambushed a Pakistani military convoy on the main highway in Nauroz Kalat, Kharan. The group claimed that at least four personnel were killed or injured in the attack.
The same day, the BLA said its fighters set fire to a vehicle carrying supplies for Pakistani forces and seized another vehicle in Parom, Panjgur. It also claimed that military surveillance cameras installed at Mashkel Kaur in the Chedgi area were destroyed.
According to TBP, BLA fighters subsequently maintained a blockade on the trade route in Chedgi for more than two hours on September 9 and conducted snap checks.
On September 10, the group said its fighters blocked the Quetta-Taftan trade route at Chehatar in Chagai and seized two commercial vehicles. It also claimed that a bridge in the area was destroyed with explosives, following which Pakistani forces advancing towards the location came under attack, allegedly resulting in casualties and material losses.
The BLA also claimed that another unit shot down a Pakistani military surveillance quadcopter in Tump on the same day.
The group detailed two attacks on Pakistani forces in Surab on September 11. According to the statement, the first involved an ambush on a military convoy at Tobo in the Gidar area.
The BLA claimed that two military vehicles came under direct attack, with one put out of action, and that six personnel were killed. It further claimed that Pakistani forces withdrew from the area, leaving behind the bodies of those killed.
In a separate incident at Rodeni Cross, Pakistani forces attempting to advance were reportedly attacked by BLA fighters. The group claimed that another three personnel were killed and at least four injured.
The weekly statement also incorporated three operations in Lasbela, Jiwani and Mashkel that the BLA had announced separately during the reporting period, TBP reported.
In Lasbela, the BLA's Fateh Squad reportedly targeted a convoy belonging to the Pakistani military's 15 FF Bomb Disposal Party at Kishari in the Walpat area on September 12.
The group claimed that two military vehicles were destroyed and two others severely damaged, resulting in nine personnel being killed and more than 11 injured.
The group said its “military confrontation will continue on every front” and pledged to continue its operations until the withdrawal of Pakistani forces and what it described as “the establishment of an independent and sovereign Balochistan”. (ANI)
BLA claims 43 Pakistani personnel, death squad members, killed in 13 Balochistan operations
