Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: At least 216 “terrorists,” 36 civilians, and 22 military personnel have been killed in Baluchistan recently, the Pakistan Army claimed on Thursday.
This is contrary to earlier reports that claimed the Baluch terrorists had, in coordinated attacks in nearly 40 hours last weekend, killed around 200 Pakistani Army personnel and their sympathisers across multiple towns and cities where they launched suicide bombings by fidayeens, including women.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistan military’s media wing, announced in a statement that it has “successfully concluded” the operation, code-named Radd-ul-Fitna-1, that was launched on January 26, the media reported.
It said that the operations were initiated in Panjgur and on the outskirts of Harnai district after “credible and verified” intelligence confirmed the presence of “terrorists.”
“During this phase, security forces undertook operations against identified terrorist hideouts, resulting in the elimination of 41 terrorists,” it said.
Subsequently, aggressive and steadfast responses by the security forces effectively thwarted the attacks, it added.
“As a result of these well-coordinated engagements and subsequent clearance operations, 216 terrorists have been sent to hell, significantly degrading the leadership, command-and-control structures and operational capabilities of terrorist networks,” the ISPR said.
The army said 36 civilians, including women and children, and 22 personnel of the security forces and law enforcement agencies were among those killed in the operations.
The ISPR alleged that “Indian-sponsored terrorist elements were seeking to disrupt peace and development” in the region.
India had earlier categorically rejected as baseless Pakistan’s allegations of an Indian hand in attempts to disturb peace in Baluchistan, and said it is Islamabad’s usual tactic to deflect attention from its “internal failings.”
Meanwhile, railway services have been restored in Baluchistan province after remaining suspended for the last five days, a Pakistan Railways official said on Thursday.
Pakistan Railways spokesperson Muhammad Kashif said that after the outbreak of terror attacks in different parts of the restive province since Saturday last week, all railway traffic from Quetta had been suspended because of security reasons.
He said that during the attacks, several railway tracks were damaged which also caused suspension of railway services.
On Tuesday, Pakistan’s National Assembly adopted a resolution urging the government to adopt an “aggressive” national response to tackle the threat of external sponsors of militancy and their internal facilitators.
Baluchistan, bordering Iran and Afghanistan, is the largest province by area in Pakistan and home to a long-running violent insurgency. Baluch insurgent groups have previously carried out several attacks targeting the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects.
In 2025, the Baluchistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the March hijacking of the Jaffar Express train going from Quetta to Peshawar, killing 31 civilians and security personnel and holding hostage over 300 passengers.