Bloody Week

Last week was one of the bloodiest Balochistan witnessed in recent times. In just four days, the Pakistan army and other security forces operating under its command suffered at least 42 fatalities in a series of attacks by Baloch sarmachars [guerrillas] fighting for Independence that commenced on July 5.
While Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif dashed to Balochistan’s capital Quetta to assure families of the deceased that those responsible for these killings would be brought to justice, the Pakistan army quickly announced the commencement of a new air-and-ground offensive- Operation Shaban against Baloch freedom fighters.
According to Dawn, Pakistani security forces have since July 5, killed a total of 102 Baloch fighters with a whopping 64 killings being attributed to Operation Shaban alone, which is indeed an impressive achievement that supports Sharif’s assurance. This spectacular success also speaks volumes about the Pakistan army’s prowess. However, these statistics also spawn some very disconcerting thoughts.

Disturbing Questions

After its attacks that commenced on July 5, Baloch Liberation Army [BLA] fighters would have definitely taken basic preventive actions in anticipation of the inevitable retaliatory strikes by swiftly shifting bases, dispersing themselves and taking extra care to conceal their locations from ground and aerial observation.
As such, if the Pakistan army could still accurately identify the latest locations where Baloch fighters had taken refuge and eliminate 64 of them in just a matter of days as it claims, then it’s evident that they possess extraordinary surveillance capabilities. And if this is true, then why didn’t the Pakistan army launch Operation Shaban earlier and save many lives? Instead of being proactive, why does the Pakistan army wait for some major incident and only take concerted military action thereafter?
In April 2025, Field Marshal Asim Munir had boasted that “we will soon beat hell out of them [Baloch sarmachars].” As more than a year has since elapsed and armed Baloch groups continue to challenge government writ with impunity by frequently blocking highways, taking temporary control of places and attacking security forces at will, the next question that the people are now asking is- how long will the Field Marshal’s “soon” take?
The elimination of more than a hundred Baloch fighters by the Pakistan army almost immediately after having suffered a major military setback, though commendable, reminds one of a curiously recurring pattern. A major attack on security forces followed by spectacularly successful retaliation in which the casualties inflicted on the attackers is inexplicably always in excess of one-and-a-half times to even more than twice of what the security forces have suffered. Claim of having broken the back of armed Baloch groups and then silence till the next attack.
While this may be a sheer coincidence, casualty figures being contested by armed Baloch groups creates an element of doubt. It may be argued that these groups try and play down the number of their own fatalities to show that they are winning, and on the face of it, this explanation makes sense. However, a deeper analysis of the armed Baloch groups’ mindset throws up a very strong counter- argument.

The Dead Don’t Speak

The Pakistan army has a dubious record of staging extra-judicial killings and passing-off those murdered as terrorists just to cover up its military reverses, and this isn’t an unsubstantiated allegation.
Director General [DG] of Pakistan army’s media wing Inter Services Public Relations [ISPR] had openly admitted this when asked about enforced disappearances in Balochistan during a media interaction in April in 2019. Readers would recall that he had then unashamedly said, “We don’t wish that anyone should be missing. But when it is war, you have to do a lot of [unpleasant] things- as they say, all is fair in love and war; war is very ruthless.” Any further proof required?

Killing to Save Face

Due to abject apathy of the international community, this vile practice continues unabated and one recent example is aftermath of the 2022 abduction and killing of serving Pakistan army officer Lt Col Laeeq Mirza Baig by BLA fighters in the Ziarat area Balochistan. Soon after Lt Col Baig was killed, ISPR announced that nine terrorists involved in his murder had been eliminated.
However, BLA outrightly rubbished ISPR’s claim by saying that all its fighters involved were safe. Its statement read, “Baloch Liberation Army takes utmost pride in its struggle and the martyrdom of our comrades during this struggle. BLA announces all martyrdoms of its members with great glory and honour. If any of our freedom fighters had lost their lives in this successful operation, we would have taken pride in making it public and paying rich tributes to them.”
This argument definitely makes sense, because besides official recognition and glorification of supreme sacrifice made by its fighters, BLA doesn’t have other incentive to motivate its rank and file. Since concealing names of its fighters killed in action would be tantamount to ignoring their “martyrdom” and adversely impact morale of its cadres, doing so is something any armed group can ill-afford.
That innocents were killed and passed off as BLA fighters by the Pakistan army in this case is also evident from the findings of the Human Rights Council of Balochistan [HRCB]. Its post on social media states “5 bodies out of 9 have been identified & all 5 persons are registered enforced disappeared persons who had remained in the custody of forces for months & years.”
Amongst these so-called ‘BLA fighters’ there was an engineer who had been abducted in broad daylight from his office at Airport Road, Quetta in 2021 and a practicing physiotherapist abducted by the Pakistan army in 2022. The facts are in public domain but the Pakistan army remains beyond the reach of law.
Following the March 2025 Jaffar Express hijacking, ISPR issued a statement declaring that 33 BLA fighters had been killed in this incident. Promptly rebutting this claim, BLA announced that it had lost only 13 fighters [including 5 fidayeen from the Majeed Brigade]. As it disclosed the identity of its deceased fighters and also released their photographs, it’s obvious that BLA proudly announced the martyrdom of their dead, and it would be absurd to believe that this group denied this honour to the remaining 20 deceased fighters by concealing their identities.
What makes the ISPR’s claim of 33 BLA casualties all the more suspicious is the fact that a week after the Jaffar Express hijacking incident, the Pakistan army dumped 23 dead bodies of “unidentified” militants in Civil Hospital Quetta, but refused to allow family members of those disappeared by security forces to identify them. And with the police secretly burying 13 of these unidentified bodies in Quetta’s Kasi graveyard at night, it’s absolutely clear that there’s much more than what meets the eye.
As dead men don’t talk and ISPR is adept in spinning yarns, it’s impossible to say for sure as to how many of the more-than-one-hundred killed by the Pakistani security forces in Balochistan are actually BLA fighters. With no one to hold their hands, the Baloch people are a forsaken lot, and to add to their woes, the Pakistan army is having a field day due to complete lack of accountability.
The Field Marshal’s complete reliance on employing force to intimidate the Baloch people into submission has only made them more defiant and his belief that he can “beat hell out of them” has created a worrisome situation. While Field Marshal Munir may blame India for instigating Baloch freedom fighters, the harsh reality is that by inflicting unbearable physical, mental and psychological trauma on the Baloch people, the Pakistan army itself is strengthening their resolve to fight for freedom.
Tailpiece: After the March 2025 Jaffar Express hijacking incident, army chief Munir demanded that Pakistan be turned into a “hard state,” and in less than three months, Pakistan’s plaint government complied by passing the contentious Counter-Terrorism (Balochistan Amendment) Act 2025 giving sweeping powers to security forces operating in the province. The bill criminalising enforced disappearances is however yet to see the light of day. Passed by Pakistan's National Assembly in 2021, it has not yet come into force, and God-fearing Field Marshal Munir has not uttered a word on the same.
But then, why should he? After all, how can Pakistan be a “hard state” if enforced disappearances are criminalised?

Email:---------------nileshkunwar56@gmail.com