ISLAMABAD: Five militants were killed and three injured during multiple intelligence-based operations (IBOs) by security forces in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan, the military’s media wing said on Friday, as the army hunts for insurgents behind a string of coordinated attacks in the province on Aug. 26 in which 50 people were killed.
Ethnic Baloch insurgents on Sunday evening hit several civil and military targets in a coordinated string of attacks in Balochistan, killing at least 19 security officials. The army said it retaliated, killing 21 militants.
“The security forces are conducting extensive intelligence-based operations to hunt down the perpetrators of these heinous acts,” the army said on Friday. “On night 29/30 August, in three separate IBOs in District Kech, Panjgur and Zhob, five terrorists were sent to hell by the security forces, while three terrorists got injured during the intense fire exchange.”
In the attacks that began on Sunday night, militants took control of a highway and shot dead 23 people, mostly laborers from neighboring Punjab province. They also attacked a hotel and blew up a railway bridge which connects Balochistan to the rest of Pakistan. Security forces have been battling sectarian, ethnic and separatist violence for decades in impoverished Balochistan, but the coordinated attacks that took place in several districts throughout the province were one of the worst in the region’s history.
Many of Sunday’s attacks were claimed by the Balochistan Liberation Army, the most prominent of separatist groups waging a war of independence against the state, which it accuses of the unfair exploitation of resources in the mineral-rich region. The government denies this.
Balochistan, which borders Afghanistan and Iran, is Pakistan’s poorest province, despite an abundance of untapped natural resources, and lags behind the rest of the country in education, employment and economic development.
The province is also home to major China-led projects such as a deep-water port and a gold and copper mine.
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has said the Aug. 26 attacks were aimed at hurting the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), an over $65 billion scheme to develop road, rail and port infrastructures in Pakistan that is part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Beijing has condemned the attacks.
Army says hunting militants behind deadly attacks in Pakistan's Balochistan
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Army says hunting militants behind deadly attacks in Pakistan's Balochistan
- Intelligence-based operations conducted in Kech, Panjgur and Zhob districts
- Five militants were killed and three injured in operations, army’s media wing says
Pakistan, Oman navies discuss maritime security, ink agreement to share shipping data
- Visiting Oman royal navy commander calls on Pakistan Naval Chief Admiral Naveed Ashraf in Islamabad
- White shipping agreement refers to exchange of prior information on movement of commercial ships
ISLAMABAD: The naval commanders of Pakistan and Oman discussed regional maritime security on Wednesday and signed an agreement to share shipping information with each other, the Pakistan Navy said in a statement.
The press release followed a meeting between Pakistan Naval Chief Admiral Naveed Ashraf and the visiting Oman Royal Navy Commander Rear Admiral Saif Bin Nasser Bin Mohsin Al Rahbi at Naval Headquarters in Islamabad.
Both navies maintain close professional relations, reflected in expert-level staff talks, joint training, bilateral exercises, and participation in multilateral exercises between the Pakistan Navy and the Royal Navy of Oman.
“During the meeting, matters of mutual interest, regional maritime security and bilateral naval cooperation were discussed,” the Pakistan Navy said.
The MoU was signed by both sides at a ceremony at the Naval Headquarters, the navy’s media wing confirmed.
“The MoU is aimed at establishing of guidelines and procedures for information sharing in order to enhance mutual awareness of white shipping,” the Pakistan Navy said in a statement.
White shipping agreement refers to the exchange of prior information on the movement and identity of commercial non-military merchant vessels.
Information regarding the identity of vessels helps countries tackle potential threats from sea routes. This particularly helps in the development of a proper regional maritime domain awareness
The statement said Al Rahbi lauded Pakistan Navy’s professionalism and acknowledged its ongoing contributions to maritime security and regional stability.
Pakistan and Oman share geographical proximity and common maritime boundaries. Bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries span a wide range of areas, including economic cooperation, people-to-people contacts and strong defense ties.
In December, a Royal Navy flotilla from Oman visited Karachi to take part in the annual bilateral Thamar Al Tayyib (TAT) 2025 exercise.
Pakistan Navy and the Royal Navy of Oman have been conducting the TAT series of exercises regularly since 1980.
