QUETTA: Pakistani forces have gunned down seven militants in the country’s southwestern Balochistan province, the military and counterterrorism officials said on Saturday, nearly two weeks after deadly attacks in the restive region.
Baloch separatist militants hit several civil and military targets in a string of coordinated attacks in Balochistan on August 25, killing more than 50 people. Balochistan, which shares its border with Iran and Afghanistan, has been the scene of a low-level insurgency by separatist militants for the last two decades.
On the night of Sept. 6-7, security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation in Balochistan’s Kalat district on reported presence of militants, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military’s media wing. During the operation, two militants were killed.
“Weapons, ammunition and explosives were also recovered from the killed terrorists, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area against security forces as well as the innocent civilians,” the ISPR said in a statement. “Sanitization operation is underway to neutralize any other terrorist present in the area.”
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif appreciated security personnel for the successful operation against militants in Kalat.
“Pakistan will continue the war against terrorism till its complete eradication from the country,” he said in a statement. “The entire nation, including me, is proud of the brave officers and soldiers of the security forces participating in the war against terrorism.”
Majority of Aug. 25 attacks in Balochistan were claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), the most prominent of separatist groups operating in the province that is home to key China-led infrastructure projects, including a port and a gold-copper mine.
The separatists accuse the central government of exploiting Balochistan’s mineral and gas resources. The Pakistani state denies the allegation, asserting it is working to uplift the region through development initiatives.
Earlier in the day, the Counterterrorism Department (CTD) of the Balochistan police announced it had killed five militants of the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in a shootout in Surkhab area of the Pishin district on Friday night.
“Five terrorists belonging the banned TTP were killed during an exchange of fire between the CTD personnel and the terrorists,” a CTD official, who did not want to be named, told Arab News. “A cache of arms and explosives, including hand grenades, improvised explosive devices and a motorbike were seized from their compound.”
The official further said one of the militants belonged to Spin Boldak, a border town in Afghanistan close to Pakistan’s southwestern city of Chaman.
Islamabad has blamed a number of recent attacks in Pakistan’s western regions on militants operating out of neighboring Afghanistan. Kabul denies the allegation and says rising violence in Pakistan is a domestic issue for Islamabad.
Pakistani forces kill seven militants in country’s restive southwest
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Pakistani forces kill seven militants in country’s restive southwest
- The development comes nearly two weeks after deadly separatist attacks killed more than 50 people in Balochistan
- PM Shehbaz Sharif appreciates security personnel for successful operation against militants in Balochistan’s Kalat
Pakistan PM orders strategy to improve project execution as multilateral lenders propose reforms
- Shehbaz Sharif says he will personally lead a steering committee to speed up priority projects
- Four working groups proposed to streamline approvals, procurement, land issues and staffing
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday directed officials to draw up a detailed strategy to improve the planning and execution of development projects, saying he would personally chair a steering committee aimed at ensuring timely and transparent completion of priority schemes.
The move came during a meeting where the World Bank and Asian Development Bank presented recommendations to the government on strengthening project implementation.
According to the prime minister’s office, participants received a briefing that said project approvals involve multiple steps and need simplification, while timely procurement and better readiness tools could also help accelerate implementation.
“National projects of critical importance must be completed transparently and on time,” Sharif told officials, according to the statement. “This is our priority.”
He said the federal and provincial steering committee on development-sector reforms would be headed by him.
The statement said four working groups were also proposed during the meeting: one to review approval and preparation processes, a second to modernize procurement, a third to address land acquisition and resettlement challenges, and a fourth to focus on human-resource alignment and staff deployment for development schemes.
Sharif thanked the World Bank and Asian Development Bank for their support and said development projects must be aligned with the objectives of Pakistan’s Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) and provincial Annual Development Plans (ADPs).
The meeting was attended by senior federal ministers, provincial representatives, senior civil servants and the country directors of both multilateral lenders.
