KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – At least 10 Pakistani security personnel and 67 militants were killed in a series of “coordinated attacks” by Baloch separatists across multiple locations in Balochistan province late Friday into Saturday, Pakistani media reported.
Geo News, citing security officials, reported that the attacks took place at 12 locations, including Quetta, Noshki, Dalbandin, Kalat and Gwadar. Authorities said the assaults were carried out by Fitna al-Hindustan, a term Islamabad uses for the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA).
Security sources said 10 members of the security forces were killed during the attacks. Militants also killed five members of a Baloch labourer family in Gwadar district, including a woman and three children.
Armed clashes, gunfire and explosions were reported in several parts of the province, including the capital Quetta. Police said gunmen targeted a police mobile unit on Sariab Road in the city, killing two officers and injuring three others.
The Baloch Liberation Army, which says it is fighting for the independence of Balochistan, confirmed responsibility for the attacks. In a video message posted on its official “Hakal” channel, its leader Bashir Zeb Baloch called on Baloch men and women to come out of their homes and join what he described as a “national liberation war” against the Pakistani military.
The attacks came a day after the Pakistani army said it had killed 41 militants in two separate security operations in the Harnai and Panjgur districts of Balochistan.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by area and richest in natural resources, borders Afghanistan and Iran and is considered the country’s second most insecure region after Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The province has faced a long-running insurgency by separatist groups, who accuse Islamabad of exploiting its vast mineral and energy wealth while neglecting local development.
Violence in Pakistan’s border regions has increased since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021. Militant groups including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the BLA have stepped up attacks on security forces, police checkpoints and military installations.
According to the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), 2025 was the deadliest year in Pakistan in recent history, with a 34% rise in militant attacks compared with 2024. The Islamabad-based think tank recorded 699 attacks nationwide, 95% of them in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, resulting in 1,034 deaths and 1,366 injuries.
Islamabad accuses the Taliban of sheltering and supporting the TTP, BLA and their affiliates, enabling cross-border attacks. The Taliban denies these claims, saying that no militant groups operate from Afghan territory and that Pakistan’s internal security is its own responsibility.
