Pakistan security forces kill 145 militants in Balochistan after deadly attacks | World News

Pakistani security forces killed 145 militants in about 40 hours, following a wave of coordinated attacks across Balochistan that left dozens of security personnel and civilians dead, the provincial chief minister said on Sunday.

According to a report by India Today, Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti said at a press conference in Quetta that the high death toll included militants killed in raids on Friday and Saturday, as well as other militants recovered in ongoing search operations.

“This is the highest figure since Pakistan faced the war on terrorism,” Bugti said, according to Dawn.

It reported that 17 law enforcement personnel and 31 civilians were killed in almost simultaneous violence in areas such as Bugti, Quetta, Gwadar, Mastung and Noshki. The attacks were claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army, prompting major operations by the army, police and counter-terrorism forces.

The Baloch Liberation Army on Saturday announced the second phase of Operation Herof, dubbed “black storm”, targeting security personnel, a day after the army reported killing 41 insurgents in two operations.

In a statement by spokesman Jeeyand Baloch, the group claimed that its fighters captured the Counter-Terrorism Agency headquarters in Noshki and overran the Frontier Corps facility, killing Pakistani soldiers in the attacks.

A day earlier, the Pakistani army had claimed, without providing any evidence, that the attacks were carried out by “India-backed militants”.

On Sunday, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif repeated the claim, saying the attackers had ties to India and promised to “completely eliminate these terrorists”.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal rejected Pakistan’s false claims in the X post.

India rejected Pakistan’s claims as baseless. External Affairs Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal issued a scathing statement, describing the allegations as a typical tactic by Islamabad to divert attention from its domestic failures.

Pointing out the country’s well-documented record of “repression, brutality and human rights violations”, Jaiswal said: “Pakistan should address the long-standing grievances of its people in the region, rather than repeating baseless accusations after every incident of violence.”