Khawaja Asif Says India, BLA Behind Balochistan Attacks

News Desk 

Sialkot: Federal Minister for Defence Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Saturday said that coordinated terrorist attacks were carried out at 12 different locations across Balochistan, accusing India and the banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) of orchestrating the violence to destabilize Pakistan.

Addressing a press conference at his residence in Sialkot, the minister said the simultaneous nature of the attacks reflected a high level of coordination and planning, aimed at causing maximum casualties. He claimed the attacks were intended to compensate for setbacks suffered by the BLA and its affiliated groups over the past year.

“These attacks expose a clear nexus — two sides of the same coin — between India and the BLA,” Khawaja Asif said, alleging that the militant outfit was operating as a proxy. He added that intelligence reports and confessional statements from arrested militants indicated links leading back to India.

The defence minister said the attacks deliberately targeted civilians and security installations at a time when Pakistan, after enduring prolonged economic challenges, has begun to show signs of recovery. “India and its proxies want to push Pakistan back into economic darkness and undermine its national integrity,” he asserted.

He said suicide bombing attempts were made on Frontier Corps headquarters in Noshki and Dalbandin, while nearly a dozen locations were targeted across the province. However, he said all attempts were foiled due to timely action by security forces.

According to Khawaja Asif, 11 security personnel were martyred during counterterrorism operations, while more than 100 militants have been killed in the past two days, a figure he said may rise further as operations continue.

Expressing concern over militant tactics, the minister said terrorist groups were increasingly exploiting women and children, citing a failed child suicide bombing attempt in Karachi and the case of a young girl in Pasni as evidence of systematic radicalization. He said individuals facing poverty and unemployment were being deliberately targeted by extremist networks.

He noted that Balochistan’s vast terrain and sparse population sometimes provide militants with temporary operational advantages but stressed that these would be eliminated. He also alleged that terrorist leadership operating from Afghanistan was exploiting innocent youth for violent activities.

The defence minister said Pakistan was engaged in a decisive and long-term fight against the BLA and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), adding that there would be no leniency for terrorists or their facilitators. “Facilitators will face the same consequences as the attackers,” he warned.

Referring to past counterterrorism efforts, Khawaja Asif said security operations had significantly reduced attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, but emphasized the need for more robust and sustained action.

He said Pakistan would take all necessary measures to defend itself, both within and beyond its borders, in accordance with the Constitution.

He also noted that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remains the most targeted province and welcomed the condemnation of the attacks by the province’s chief minister earlier in the day.

Concluding his remarks, the defence minister called for political unity in the fight against terrorism. “This is not a political struggle but a national one,” he said, paying tribute to the martyrs from all provinces who laid down their lives for the country. “Our loyalty is to the nation and the soil alone.”