Pakistan Reviews Security Strategy After Deadly Wave of Attacks in Balochistan

QUETTA (Terror Monitor) — Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired a high-level security meeting in Quetta on Thursday to review the security situation in Balochistan following a series of deadly militant attacks that killed at least 42 people, most of them security personnel.

The meeting was attended by Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir and Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti. Officials reviewed the government's strategy to counter the recent surge in militant violence across the province.

Prime Minister Sharif expressed condolences to the families of the 42 victims and vowed that security operations would continue until "the last terrorist is eliminated from Pakistan."

According to officials, security forces have killed at least 54 militants in operations launched since Monday.

Sharif's visit came as Balochistan witnessed a sharp escalation in violence. The banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for multiple attacks this week that left at least 42 people dead, raising concerns that the separatist group is expanding the scope of its operations.

The deadliest attack occurred on Monday in Ziarat district, where militants attacked a police checkpoint, killing nine police officers. Authorities said 18 other officers abducted during the assault were later killed by their captors.

Following the incident, relatives of the slain police personnel staged a sit-in in Quetta with the victims' bodies, demanding justice and the arrest of those responsible.

Addressing the meeting, Sharif reiterated that Pakistan would continue its counterterrorism campaign until militant groups were eliminated.

Without naming India, the prime minister accused Pakistan's eastern neighbor of playing a "major role" in fueling unrest by providing weapons, financial support, and other assistance to militant groups.

He also alleged that militants were using Afghan territory to launch attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, but said Pakistan would defeat what he described as their "malicious designs."

There was no immediate response from Kabul or New Delhi. Both governments have repeatedly rejected similar allegations in the past.

Balochistan, Pakistan's largest province by area but least populated, has long faced separatist insurgency as well as attacks by the banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Militant violence linked to the TTP has increased significantly since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021.