Govt doesn't rule out Zarb-e-Azb style action in Balochistan

Express Tribune

24-05-2025

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The government on Friday hinted at initiating an operation against terrorists in Balochistan similar to Zarb-e-Azb that was launched against the terrorist outfits in the former Federally-Administered Tribal Areas (ex-Fata) in 2014.
At a joint press conference with Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, Interior Secretary Muhammad Khurram Agha stressed that Pakistan remained fully committed to combating terrorism.
The press conference came just days after a barbaric suicide bomb attack on a school bus in Khuzdar in Balochistan that claimed the lives of at least eight people, including six schoolchildren. Lt Gen Chaudhry and Agha both said that initial investigation reveals that 'Fitna al-Hindustan' was behind the bombing.
"If the need be, and that would be a later decision, it would have an operation maybe similar to Zarb-e-Azb but at a later stage. As of now, there are continuous operations under way that you [media] are witnessing and Lt Gen [Chaudhry] has shared figures relating to those as well," Agha told the journalists.
"Every effort is being made; day and night; our people are making efforts and our security forces are achieving results as shown earlier. As we speak, in due course, it [our efforts] will increase and we will eliminate all such elements over time," he added.
"Once we go with something like Zarb-e-Azb, we have to be prepared. In that preparation, every effort is being made so that every facet of the National Action Plan [NAP] that is implemented [and] brings peace that we need," Agha stressed.
The interior secretary stated that the Khuzdar attack indicated India's shift from hard targets to soft targets. He condemned the "cowardly attack on innocent children" and vowed retaliation. "Our response will be decisive. They [terrorists] will not succeed."
On the occasion, the DG ISPR said that India-sponsored attackers had no humanity, morality, and Baloch or Pakistani identity. He said that India had been involved in state-sponsored terrorism for the past many decades to destabilise regional peace.
He recalled that in 2009, Pakistan presented a dossier to the United Nations with evidence of India's involvement in terrorist activities in Balochistan. In 2016, he added, Pakistan again provided evidence of Indian involvement in terrorism to the UN.
He also pointed out that arrested terrorists had admitted to receiving funding from India for various attacks. "The Khuzdar incident is deeply tragic, carried out on India's orders. Fitna al-Hindustan is targeting innocent people, including children and travellers," he added.
The chief military spokesperson highlighted a string of attacks carried out on directions from India in Balochistan such as the killing of workers, attacks on buses, bombings, and incidents involving non-locals being targeted in barber shops.
Showing images and video footage of the martyred children during the briefing, Lt Gen Chaudhry said the attack in Khuzdar was an escalation in this pattern, with India shifting its strategy to attacking women and children.
He emphasised that the terror activities in Balochistan were not linked to any specific ethnic group or religion but the result of India's proxy war in the region. "Is there any humanity, morality, any Baloch or Pakistani identity in this?" he asked.
The DG ISPR presented an audio recording of an Indian army officer, Maj Sandeep, discussing the funding of terrorism in Balochistan. The officer's conversation revealed how India strategically sent money to fuel terrorism in Pakistan, using separate accounts for different stages of operations.
He questioned India's justification for attacking Pakistani mosques and madrasas. He questioned the credibility of India's claims, pointing out that Pakistan had always presented evidence to counter India's allegations, whereas India had failed to provide any evidence of its claims.
The press conference also included images of terrorists killed by Pakistani security forces in Balochistan, showing them armed with expensive foreign weapons like sniper rifles and night-vision equipment. "Who provided such advanced weapons to these terrorists," he asked.
He criticised Indian media for celebrating the deaths of Pakistani women and children, falsely accusing Pakistan of being the source of terrorism. He mentioned rapid coverage in Indian media of the October 6, 2024 attack on Chinese nationals, which showed how Indian media was complicit in such events.
He said that India's proxy terrorism was creating a situation where the Pakistani military had been compelled to take action. "While India continues to rely on its proxies to create instability, Pakistan remains united, with the military, government, and the people all aligned in the fight against terrorism."
Having miserably failed in Operation Sindoor, the chief military spokesperson said, the terror proxies of Hindustan had been tasked to intensify their heinous acts of terrorism in Balochistan and elsewhere. He made it clear that the people of Pakistan would not let them succeed in their sinister designs.
"Pakistan and its people, particularly in Balochistan, reject this nefarious design. The state has the capacity and the will to dismantle these networks and bring the perpetrators and their handlers to justice. Such actions will have consequences," he warned.
He also highlighted the development projects in Balochistan, including investments in the blue economy, the Gwadar International Airport, and the ongoing construction of roads, hospitals, and technical institutes, signalling the province's future growth.
The DG ISPR emphasised that Balochistan's growing prosperity was a challenge for terrorists, as it showed the strength of Pakistan's unity and the growing opportunities for its people, including over 73,000 Baloch students receiving scholarships.
Giving statistics, Lt Gen Chaudhry said that there were 4,664 terrorist incidents across Pakistan, with 1,612 occurring in Balochistan. The security forces conducted 93,515 counter-terrorism operations nationwide, including 52,887 in Balochistan, he added.
He told reporters that in 2024, security forces killed 1,018 terrorists across the country, including 233 in Balochistan. So far in 2025, 747 terrorists had been killed, including 203 in Balochistan. Security forces have intensified their operations against militants.
On the issue of missing persons, he stated that many claims were politically-motivated, with the BYC [Balochistan Yakjehti Committee], acting as a proxy for Indian interests in the region. "There is no ideology of terrorism - only India's attempt to establish regional hegemony," he added.
To a question the DG ISPR said: "For decades, India has poured billions into its military budget - not merely for its security, but to project itself as a regional and global power". However, he added that India operated under "several faulty and erroneous assumptions".
India, he said, gravely misjudged the resilience of the Pakistani state and the unity of its people. "The consequences of those miscalculations are now evident. Let them try again if they wish - we remain ready, firm, and more resolute than ever," he said.
Highlighting the core issue obstructing peace in South Asia, the chief military spokesperson stressed that sustainable peace between Pakistan and India was impossible without a just and lasting resolution of the Kashmir dispute.
"Kashmir is not merely a bilateral issue - it holds regional implications involving Pakistan, India, and even China. It is an internationally recognised disputed territory, contrary to India's claims of it being an internal matter," he said.
He condemned India's military presence in the region, stating that over 700,000 troops have been deployed in Indian-Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) to suppress the local population. "Incidents like the one in Pahalgam illustrate the severity and brutality that led to detention of thousands without due process, systemic abuses, and enforced disappearances," he added.
He criticized India's domestic human rights record. "Sikhs, Christians, Dalits, and other minorities face entrenched and prolonged discrimination. These are not internal matters - they are global human rights concerns," he said.
In response to a question on India's reported obstruction of water flows to Pakistan, the DG ISPR termed the act a serious breach of international law and bilateral agreements, specifically the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT).
"The people and the state of Pakistan are united on this issue. The prime minister has been clear on this point: any unilateral attempt to alter the water flows will be met with a firm diplomatic and strategic response," he vowed.
(WITH INPUT FROM APP)