Fighters reportedly fire at a vehicle carrying Frontier Corps paramilitaries trying to dismantle a roadblock.
Officials and local media reports have confirmed that at least 18 paramilitary soldiers and 24 armed attackers lost their lives in two interconnected incidents in southwestern Pakistan. Sectarian, ethnic, and separatist violence is on the rise in the region.
Pakistan’s military revealed that fighters attempted to establish roadblocks in Balochistan overnight, with most casualties occurring as security forces dismantled them.
A police official informed the AFP news agency that a vehicle carrying unarmed Frontier Corps paramilitaries near Mangochar was attacked by 70 to 80 armed assailants who had blocked the road. Three paramilitaries were seriously wounded, while two managed to escape unscathed.
The Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack on the paramilitary, stating a death toll of 17, although official reports suggest otherwise.
Security forces conducted follow-up “clearance operations” resulting in the death of at least 11 attackers on Saturday.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan condemned the attack in a released statement.
The province of Balochistan, known for its mineral wealth and bordering Iran and Afghanistan, has been embroiled in a separatist ethnic Baloch groups’ rebellion for over a decade, with numerous armed groups operating in the area.
In a separate incident on Tuesday, attackers in an explosive-laden vehicle were thwarted in their effort to overrun a Pakistani security post near the Afghan border.
Previously, the BLA claimed responsibility for an attack in January that resulted in at least six casualties, and in November, coordinated BLA attacks led to the deaths of at least 39 individuals.
Violence in Balochistan escalated in August, with 73 people losing their lives as separatist fighters targeted police stations, railway lines, and highways, prompting retaliatory actions by security forces.
The recent surge in attacks across Pakistan occurs amid deteriorating relations between the country and Afghanistan’s Taliban leadership.
Similar spikes in attacks have also been observed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in recent months. In 2024 alone, the military reported 383 soldiers and 925 fighters killed in clashes along the border.
