QUETTA: A group of unidentified gunmen stopped a passenger bus traveling from Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, to Taftan, a town bordering Iran, and killed nine passengers from Punjab province after checking the ID cards of people onboard in southwestern Pakistan, confirmed a senior police official on Saturday.
The incident happened on Friday night near the mountainous Nushki district of Balochistan province which has long been the scene of an insurgency by separatists fighting for independence.
While no group has claimed responsibility of the attack, Baloch nationalists have long complained of political marginalization and economic exploitation, accusing the Pakistani government and Punjab province of monopolizing profits from Balochistan’s rich natural resources.
Pakistani administrations have denied such allegations in the past, pointing out they have launched several development initiatives in the province to improve the lives of the residents of Balochistan.
Speaking to Arab News, a senior police official in Nushki said the armed men intercepted a passenger bus at the Quetta-Taftan Highway.
“They off-boarded nine passengers after checking their ID card near Sultan Charahi, and took them away to the nearby mountains before shooting them from point-blank range,” Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) Allah Bukhsh said. “Police and law enforcement agencies pursued the terrorists who fired RPG [rocket-propelled grenades] on security forces and escaped. But hunt for these terrorists is underway.”
Baloch separatists have also targeted Punjabi laborers working in the province in the past. At least 10 of them had been killed in Balochistan’s Turbat district during two separate attacks last year in October.
A key armed separatist faction, Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has intensified attacks in the region over the past two months following the February 8 general elections in Pakistan. The group launched coordinated attacks on the country’s key strategic installations in Gwadar and Kech districts during this period.
“Earlier on Friday, the terrorists also attacked a vehicle driven by the brother of an elected member of the provincial assembly from Nushki, Ghulam Dastagir Badini, and busted his vehicle’s tire,” the police officer added. “The vehicle fell down into a ditch killing one man and injuring four others.”
Chief Minister Balochistan Sarfaraz Bugti condemned the killings of passengers and asked law enforcement agencies to pursue people involved in the incident.
“We will not forgive these terrorists who are enemies of Pakistan and seek to sabotage peace in Balochistan,” he said in an official statement released by his office.
Gunmen kill nine passengers in Pakistan’s restive southwest
https://arab.news/48tgv
Gunmen kill nine passengers in Pakistan’s restive southwest
- Gunmen stopped a bus in Balochistan and separated passengers belonging to Punjab after checking ID cards
- Police in Nushki district say they pursued the armed men who fired rocket-propelled grenades and escaped
Punjab expands Pakistan-India Wagah border arena with museum, partition-themed park
- The border crossing, near eastern city of Lahore, is the primary land route between Pakistan and India and one of the most recognizable symbols of their often-tense relations
- The site is best known for its daily flag-lowering ceremony, a choreographed military ritual performed by border forces from both countries that draws thousands of spectators
ISLAMABAD: Maryam Nawaz, chief minister of Pakistan’s Punjab province, on Thursday inaugurated the newly constructed arena at Wagah border cross between Pakistan and India, which includes a museum and a partition themed park.
The Wagah border crossing, located near the eastern city of Lahore, is the primary land route between Pakistan and India and one of the most recognizable symbols of the often-tense relationship between the two neighbors. It serves as a key point for prisoner exchanges and limited movement of travelers, while remaining tightly regulated due to security considerations.
The site is best known for its daily flag-lowering ceremony, a choreographed military ritual performed by border forces from both countries that draws thousands of spectators. Over the years, the ceremony has evolved into a popular tourist attraction, blending displays of nationalism with public spectacle and making it one of Pakistan’s most visited landmarks, which connects with India’s Attari.
Flanked by military officials, CM Nawaz visited the crossing and inaugurated the new arena, with its seating capacity increased from 7,500 to 25,000 spectators, the state-run Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported. The chief minister also visited the martyrs’ monument and offered her respects.
“In addition to the arena’s expansion, several new constructions have been added at the Joint Check Post Wagah. These new developments include a theme park depicting the partition of the Subcontinent, featuring models of a railway station, military equipment and a Martyrs’ Memorial,” the broadcaster reported.
“A Pakistan Museum has also been established within the arena, showcasing the country’s history and culture from the Freedom Movement to the present day.”
In August 1947, Britain divided the Indian Sub-continent, its former colony, into two countries — Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan.
Excitement over independence was quickly overshadowed by some of the worst bloodletting that left up to 1 million people dead as gangs of Hindus and Muslims slaughtered each other.
Creating two independent nations also tore apart millions of Hindu and Muslim families in one of the world’s largest peacetime migrations, which displaced at least 15 million people.
The fate of Kashmir, then a princely state, was left undecided. The Himalayan territory continues to remain a flashpoint in relations between the neighbors, who have fought multiple wars over it.
