Militants storm police station, torch banks, kill a boy in southwest Pakistan
The boy died when the attackers fired on civilians indiscriminately during the attacks in Mastung, a district in Balochistan province, said Jan Mohammad, a local government administrator.
Mohammad said some of the insurgents were also killed in the shootout with security forces.
A provincial government spokesman, Shahid Rind, said a security operation had been launched to pursue the assailants.
No group immediately claimed responsibility, though suspicion is likely to fall on the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army, or BLA, which often targets security forces and civilians in Balochistan and elsewhere.
The United States designated the BLA a terrorist organization in 2019.
Balochistan has long been the scene of a low-level insurgency by separatist groups seeking independence from the central government.
The province is also home to militants linked to the Pakistani Taliban and Daesh group.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
44 minutes ago
- Arab News
Authorities impose 30-day restriction on movement of people, vehicles in restive Pakistani district
ISLAMABAD: Local administration has imposed a 30-day restriction on the movement of people and vehicles from dusk till dawn in Pakistan's North Waziristan district, following the killing of 13 Pakistani soldiers in a suicide attack. The suicide attack, claimed by Hafiz Gul Bahadur group of the Pakistani Taliban, also injured 29 people, including civilians, in the volatile district that borders Afghanistan, local government and police officials said on June 28. Since late 2022, Pakistan has struggled to contain a surge in militancy in its northwest, where the Pakistani Taliban, or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and other militant groups have frequently targeted security forces convoys and check-posts, law enforcers and government officials. There was a need to restrict all kinds of movement within North Waziristan in the interest of 'public safety, law and order, movement of security forces and [to] restrict the movement of outlaws,' according to the North Waziristan deputy commissioner's office. 'I... hereby impose a ban on all kinds of movement of individuals, vehicles and all forms of traffic within the territorial jurisdiction of District North Waziristan, including all major roads, bypasses, link roads, streets, public gathering areas, bazaars, business centers, playgrounds from dusk to dawn (just after Maghreb prayers all the night till the sunrise) to prevent any untoward incidents, ensure smooth public administration,' Deputy Commissioner Yousaf Karim said in a notification. The official requested public to comply with the order. 'Any person (s) found violating this order shall be liable for legal action,' read the notification issued on June 29. 'THIS ORDER shall come into force at once and remain in force for a period of 30 days from the date of issuance unless modified or rescinded earlier.' The North Waziristan district has long been a stronghold of the TTP. Authorities also imposed a curfew in North Waziristan, along with South Waziristan and Tank districts, in March this year. Pakistan has witnessed a sharp rise in violence in its regions bordering Afghanistan, with Islamabad accusing India of backing militant groups and Afghanistan of allowing the use of its soil for attacks against Pakistan. Kabul and New Delhi deny the allegation. Militant attacks in Pakistan more than doubled from 517 in 2023 to 1,099 in 2024. Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remained the hardest-hit provinces, accounting for over 96 percent of attacks and fatalities.
Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
Pakistan PM visits Iranian embassy, assures continued support following Israeli attacks
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday visited the Iranian embassy in Islamabad and assured Tehran of Islamabad's continued support, following last month's Israeli attacks on Iran. The 12-day war between Iran and Israel, which began on June 13 Israeli airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities and military leadership, raised alarms in a region that was already on edge since the start of Israel's war on Gaza in October 2023. Pakistan remained engaged in talks with regional partners like Saudi Arabia, Iran, China and Qatar to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East after Iran conducted retaliatory strikes on Israel and a US base in Qatar, raising fears the conflict could draw in other regional states. During his visit to the Iranian embassy, Sharif signed a condolence book opened by the Iranian mission to honor the Iranians who were killed and injured during the Israeli attacks against Iran, according to the Pakistan PM's office. 'He expressed his deepest condolences to the people and Government of Iran, while reaffirming Pakistan's sympathy and solidarity with Iran during this difficult time,' Sharif's office said. 'While assuring the Iranian side of Pakistan's consistent and continued support, the Prime Minister also conveyed his good wishes and respects for Iranian Supreme Leader His Eminence Ayatullah Ali Khamenei, as well as for President Dr. Massoud Pezeshkian.' On Monday, Iranian judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir offered a sharply increased, government-issued death toll from the war, saying that the Israeli attacks killed 935 'Iranian citizens,' including 38 children and 102 women. The Israeli strikes came at a time when Iranian officials were engaged in nuclear negotiations with the US and the conflict worsened after the US struck three Iranian nuclear sites on June 22. President Donald Trump claimed the strikes set back Iran's nuclear program by years. Iran is assessing the damage and lashing out over the American and Israeli airstrikes on its nuclear sites, though Tehran kept open the possibility Tuesday of resuming talks with Washington over its atomic program, AP news agency reported. The comments by government spokesperson Fatemeh MoHajjerani also included another acknowledgment that Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz, key sites within Iran's nuclear program, had been 'seriously damaged' by the American strikes. 'No date (for US talks) is announced, and it's not probably very soon, but a decision hasn't been made in this field,' the state-run IRNA news agency quoted MoHajjerani as saying at a briefing for journalists. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has also kept open the possibility of talks with the US.
Arab News
6 hours ago
- Arab News
Teenager killed, 11 injured as militants storm southwestern Pakistani town
QUETTA: Dozens of militants armed with guns and rockets stormed the Mastung town in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province, a government spokesman and health officials said on Tuesday, with a teenager killed and 11 others injured in the attack. The militants stormed a bank, tehsil and other offices, Balochistan government spokesman Shahid Rind said, adding that gunfire by militants killed a 16-year-old boy and injured seven others. Dr. Saeed Meerwani, medical superintendent of Mastung District Headquarters Hospital, told one body and three injured were brought to the hospital, while Arbab Awais Kasi, a spokesman for Nawab Ghous Bukhsh Raisani Hospital, said the facility treated and discharged eight injured persons. 'FC [Frontier Corps paramilitary], CTD [Counter-Terrorism Department] and Levies [paramilitary] surrounded the area and the militants retreated,' Rind said in a statement. 'Two terrorists were killed and three were injured in the exchange of fire between security forces and terrorists.' Rind said the attack was carried out by 'Fitna Al-Hindustan,' a reference to alleged Indian-backed Baloch separatist groups in the region. New Delhi denies supporting militancy in Pakistan. Balochistan has long been the scene of a low-level insurgency by separatists seeking independence from the central government. The province is also home to militants linked to the Pakistani Taliban and the Daesh (Islamic State) group. 'The swift response by security forces helped prevent further loss of lives,' Rind said. 'A full-scale operation is underway against the terrorists present in the area.' He said security agencies have also started searching for the facilitators of the attackers. In recent months, the separatists have mounted their attacks against the government and security forces in Balochistan, where the military has a huge presence in and has long run intelligence-based operations against groups such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). In March, the BLA separatist hijacked a train with hundreds of passengers aboard near Balochistan's Bolan Pass, which resulted in the deaths of 23 soldiers, three railway employees and five passengers. At least 33 insurgents were also killed. More than 50 people, including security forces, were killed in August last year in a string of coordinated assaults in the province that were claimed by the BLA.
