File photo. Abdul Majeed—AFP
Six security personnel, including a captain, were martyred in Balochistan on Sunday after being targeted in two separate incidents of terrorism, according to the military’s media wing.
In the first incident, which occurred in the Sambaza area of Zhob, Balochistan, troops were undertaking an intelligence-based operation to prevent terrorists from using suspected routes across the Pak-Afghan border to sneak into Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province and target citizens and security forces. “As a result of continuous surveillance and sanitization of the area, a group of terrorists was intercepted in early hours [on Sunday],” read a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
It said the militants had opened fire on the security forces while they were establishing “blocking positions” to obstruct escape route. In the ensuing gunfight, read the statement, 1 terrorist was killed while Sepoy Haq Nawaz embraced martyrdom and two other soldiers were injured. “The terrorists were supported by their facilitators from across the border” in the form of supplementary fire, it said, adding that a sanitization operation was ongoing to apprehend all perpetrators.
In the second incident, Army personnel were conducting a clearance operation in the Kahan area of Balochistan—launched on Dec. 24—when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated near the leading party. “Resultantly, Captain Fahad along with four other brave sons of soil—Lance Naik Imtiaz, Sepoy Asghar, Sepoy Mehran and Sepoy Shamoon—embraced shahadat, laying their lives in defense of the motherland against an externally perpetrated threat of terrorism,” said the ISPR.
Vowing that such “cowardly acts” would not sabotage the hard-earned peace and prosperity of Balochistan, the military’s media wing stressed that security forces were determined to challenge them at the cost of their own lives. It said a sanitization operation to apprehend the perpetrators was ongoing in the area.
Grenade attacks
Also on Sunday, over 12 people, including three policemen, were injured in various attacks across Balochistan. In the first such incident, militants threw a grenade attack at the Sabzal Road on the outskirts of provincial capital Quetta, injuring four people, including two teenage girls. Police said they had also recovered and defused an IED from the area.
The second grenade attack targeted a police checkpost in Satellite Town, injuring eight people, including three policemen. The third incident similarly targeted a Frontier Constabulary checkpost at Sariab Road, with unidentified motorcyclists hurling a grenade at the location. The attack caused no injuries or casualties.
In Hub, Balochistan, a bomb detonated outside a police station in the evening, injuring three people. In Khuzdar, likewise, a grenade attack targeted a police vehicle, though no casualties were reported. In Kalat and Turbat, militants attacked security forces but were unsuccessful in inflicting any injuries or deaths.
Condemnations
Condemning the string of terror attacks across Balochistan, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif paid tribute to the martyred soldiers and lauded the security forces for their “effective” operations against terrorists. Similarly, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo instructed the Inspector General Police to take measures to ensure the protection of the lives and property of citizens and sought a report into the investigation into the attacks.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari also condemned the attacks and vowed the government would support the security forces in their battle against terrorists.