The province of Balochistan is once again in the vortex of turmoil and violence. On February 5, 2022, Pakistani military said it has killed at least 20 rebels in Balochistan after two army posts were attacked within hours of each other on February 2.[1] The attacks targeted paramilitary post in the town of Panjgur, about 450km (280 miles) south of the provincial capital, Quetta, and another one in Noshki, about 330km (205 miles) north of the first attack spot. Following the twin attacks, in a statement emailed to the media, the ethnic Baloch separatist group Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the attacks. Jeayand Baloch, the BLA’s spokesman, said the raids were carried out by attackers who were prepared to “self-sacrifice”.[2]
Interestingly, earlier, in yet another violent attack, three civilians were killed and more than 30 others were wounded[3] in Pan Mandi area of Lahore’s famous Anarkali Market on January 20. The preliminary investigations showed that the blast was caused by a time-controlled device rigged to a motorcycle, Police spokesman Arif Rana said.[4]
A couple of hours after the blast, a Twitter handle supposedly from one Mureed Baloch said that Baloch Nationalist Army (BNA) has claimed responsibility for the blast. He stated, “We accept responsibility for targeting the Habib Bank in Anar Kali Bazaar, Lahore with explosives. This attack targeted the Bank employees…” A detailed statement claims how this attack is a protest against the violence and killing of women and children by Pakistani troops in Balochistan.[5] Interestingly, Baloch groups have been attacking state installations outside Balochistan. In one such incident, in June, 2020, insurgents of Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) attacked Pakistani stock exchange in Karachi, the financial hub of Pakistan. Earlier, in 2018 BLA insurgents also tried to storm the Chinese Consulate in Karachi, killing at least four people.[6]
Interestingly, the BNA is a new Baloch insurgent group that has been formed by a merger of two banned Baloch insurgent groups: Baloch Republican Army-BRA (banned in 2010) and United Baloch Army-UBA (banned in 2013). The announcement came from BRA spokesman Beebagr Baloch and UBA spokesman Mureed Baloch, who stated that the councils of both the former organizations met in an attempt to decide how best to combine and carry forward the resistance against Pakistani forces. They also took stock of the political situation in Balochistan, in this meeting. Reportedly, BNA is part of the larger Baloch Raaji Aajoi Sangar (BRAS). Their official channel is ‘Baask’. This outfit’s central command council is tasked with organizing and planning resistance against Pakistani forces.[7]
The Chief of Transnational Terrorists Intelligence Group (TTIG) of Sindh Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD), Raja Umar Khattab said that the merger or alliance happened on January 11, 2022, when the group was formed. Most of the information about the group was gathered after the blast. Khattab also said the Lahore blast was the second terrorist attack claimed by this new group in two days. It claimed to have carried out an attack on a security convoy in Balochistan’s Kech district on January 19.[8]
Over a period of time, ethnic Baloch groups have fought a long-running insurgency for a separate homeland and a greater share of resources in Balochistan province.[9] Accordingly, various Baloch insurgent groups have emerged in Pakistan, as a direct response to various deceitful actions taken by the Federal Government. The tale of Balochistan since 1948 (when it merged with Pakistan, under duress) is that of ceaseless tyranny and revolt. The Pakistan government has waged military campaigns against the Baloch people in 1948, 1958-59, 1962-63 and 1973-77. Five rebellions since 1947. The first wave of rebellion occurred in 1948, followed by the second in 1955 after the imposition of the ‘One-Unit’ Plan of Ayub Khan. The third rebellion caused due to the declaration of Martial Law in 1958. The fourth wave came in the year 1973 when the then Balochistan Chief Minister Sardar Attaullah Mengal was fired by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. The fifth and the continuing wave of conflict began when strain mounted between the Bugti tribe under the leadership of Nawab Mohammad Akbar Khan Bugti and the Provincial and Federal authorities.[10]
The resource-rich, but often neglected province of Balochistan, which borders Afghanistan and Iran, has not only been plagued by separatist insurgency, but also sectarian violence, and attacks by Islamist militants that has led to thousands of casualties. The story of Balochistan is that of persistent human spirit facing worse possible state-sponsored massacre and viciousness. According to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Human Development Index (HDI) 2019, Balochistan’s people are amongst the worst affected under the Multi-Dimensional Poverty Index (MPI). Many areas in Balochistan still lack basic amenities such as roads, schools, hospitals, etc. Shockingly, Pakistan’s ‘kill and dump’ policy in Balochistan has resulted in regular occurrences of mutilated dead bodies of Baloch people, in various stages of decomposition and beyond recognition, dotting the roads of Balochistan. These killing result out of enforced disappearances engineered by the Army, the intelligence agencies and their Islamist proxies.[11]
The Baloch rebels have been fighting the government for decades, demanding a separate state and stating the central government unethically exploits Balochistan’s rich gas and mineral resources. The latest unification of BRA and UBA in the form of BNA, indicates a calculated and cautious step towards intensifying the national base of Baloch insurgency and trying to unite previously scattered Baloch forces against the Pakistani military, intelligence forces and para-military. This gives the groups a larger prospect to share weapons, ammunitions, intelligence, and safe havens, allowing operations to be conducted more efficiently. The series of fresh attacks by Baloch groups towards the military installations is a clear indication that the voices of the oppressed shall not be silenced.
[1] https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/5/pakistan-says-it-has-killed-20-rebels-in-three-days-of-clashes
[2] https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/3/pakistani-forces-battle-gunmen-after-balochistan-checkpost-raids
[3] https://www.dawn.com/news/1670672
[4] https://gandhara.rferl.org/a/pakistan-lahore-market-bomb-blast/31663203.html
[5] https://opoyi.com/lahore-bomb-blast-who-are-baloch-nationalist-army-group-claiming-responsibility
[6] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53217227
[7] https://opoyi.com/lahore-bomb-blast-who-are-baloch-nationalist-army-group-claiming-responsibility
[8] https://www.samaa.tv/news/2022/01/who-formed-the-terror-group-behind-lahore-bombing/
[9] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53217227
[10]http://www.pildat.org/publications/publication/balochistanconflict/IssuePaperBalochistanConflictCMR.pdf
[11] https://www.newageislam.com/islam-sectarianism/sanchita-bhattacharya/balochistan-highlights-brazen-approach-pakistan-government-dealing-with-genuine-concerns-balochs/d/124049
