Security forces have killed 22 additional terrorists, raising the total number of casualties to 177 over the past three days.
Security sources said operations against militants linked to “Fitna-e-Hindustan” are ongoing.
They added that security agencies, including intelligence services and police, are tightening the net around terrorists and their facilitators across various parts of Balochistan.
Authorities said counterterrorism efforts have been further intensified, with reports confirming additional casualties among militants and their collaborators.
A day earlier, Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti stated that at least 145 terrorists were killed during nearly 40 hours of security operations following coordinated attacks by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) in 12 towns across the province.
Speaking at a press conference here, Bugti said the attacks claimed the lives of 17 security personnel and 31 civilians. He added that the provincial government would take responsibility for the families of those martyred and disclosed that intelligence agencies had already received reports about the planned attacks, prompting authorities to begin operations a day earlier.
The chief minister stated that the bodies of 145 terrorists were now in official custody. He also confirmed that militants in Gwadar had killed five women and three children belonging to a Baloch family from Khuzdar, calling the incident a grave act of brutality.
Bugti accused hostile forces, particularly India, of attempting to destabilise Pakistan through proxy groups like the BLA. He questioned the legitimacy of the group, asking whether it was a registered political party with which talks could be held, and said its objective was to impose its ideology through violence.
Reiterating the government’s stance, Bugti said there would be no surrender under any circumstances. “They can create instability, but they cannot take even an inch of our land,” he said, adding that those responsible would not be allowed to escape and warning that the ground would be made unbearable for terrorists.
He rejected claims that large-scale force was being used in Balochistan, explaining that only limited, intelligence-driven operations were conducted. Bugti said militants often hide among civilians, making operations highly sensitive, and stressed that the state deliberately avoids excessive force to prevent civilian casualties.
Providing a security update, he said terrorists had failed in their attempt to breach the Red Zone and confirmed that Nushki had been fully cleared. He added that operations had already been launched based on intelligence information before the attacks occurred.
Bugti again referred to the killing of a Baloch family in a labour colony in Gwadar and questioned why Baloch people were being pushed into violence at the behest of external forces. He said such incidents tend to occur whenever Pakistan moves toward economic or political stability.
The chief minister said the government was prepared to continue the fight against terrorism for as long as necessary. He dismissed the notion that militancy in Balochistan was solely the result of deprivation, noting that authorities could have used heavy weapons but chose restraint to protect civilians.
Source: Dunya News
