QUETTA: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday called recent attacks by separatists in the southwestern Balochistan province a “wicked scheme” launched by the “external enemies of Pakistan and their internal infiltrators,” rejecting talks with militant groups.
On Wednesday, top Pakistani officials said militants were using the territory of neighboring Afghanistan and receiving support from India’s Research & Analysis Wing (RAW) spy agency to launch attacks in Pakistan, including a string of recent deadly attacks that killed over 50 people in Balochistan. Delhi and Kabul have not commented on the allegations.
The attacks began on Sunday night, when separatists militants in the country’s largest province took control of a highway and shot dead 23 people, mostly laborers from the eastern Punjab province. They also blew up a railway bridge that connects Balochistan to the rest of Pakistan and tried to separately storm camps of the paramilitary Frontier Corps and Levies forces. On Tuesday night, militants tried to capture a key highway but were forced to retreat into the mountains after paramilitary forces arrived.
Sunday’s assaults were the most widespread in years by ethnic militants fighting a decades-long insurgency to win secession of the resource-rich province, home to major China-led projects such as a port and a gold and copper mine. The Pakistani state denies it is exploiting Balochistan and says it is working for the uplift of the region through development schemes.
On Thursday, Sharif, accompanied by Army Chief General Asim Munir, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and other federal ministers, arrived in Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, where he chaired a provincial apex committee meeting to review the security situation in the province following the latest assault.
“External enemies of Pakistan and internal infiltrators planned this wicked scheme of attacks in Balochistan which killed our civilian citizens, brave FC and Levis soldiers,” Sharif said, without naming the external enemies.
“The Prime Minister made it clear that dialogues could only be possible with those who respect the constitution of Pakistan and salute the national flag,” Sharif was quoted as saying in a statement released by his office, as the PM rejected talks with separatist groups.
At the end of the meeting, Sharif distributed cheques among families of victims of the recent terror attacks in Balochistan.
“The forum also agreed to enhance the capacity of the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD), Police, Levies, and associated departments. The Prime Minister and Army Chief reaffirmed their resolve to prevent inimical forces from disrupting the hard-earned peace and development of Balochistan at any cost,” the statement from the PM’s office said.
“The Committee vowed to bring the planners, instigators, facilitators, and perpetrators of the cowardly attacks to justice, ensuring the protection of citizens’ lives and properties at all costs.”
On Tuesday, Sharif had said the attacks were aimed at stopping development projects in Balochistan that form part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
CPEC, said to have development commitments worth $65 billion, is part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road initiative.
Beijing has previously flagged concerns about the security of its citizens working on projects in Pakistan, particularly in Balochistan. Six Chinese engineers working on a dam project were killed in March in the northwest.
Separatist militants have also targeted Balochistan’s deepwater Gwadar port, which is run by China.
Chinese targets have previously come under attack by several Baloch militant groups, who say they have been fighting for decades for a larger share in the regional wealth of mines and minerals denied by the central government.
