QUETTA: The Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) announced the suspension of mobile Internet services in various parts of the restive southwestern Balochistan province on Friday, saying the decision was taken to “ensure public safety” amid a surge in militant violence over the past several months.
The announcement follows a deadly suicide bombing at a crowded railway station in Quetta, the provincial capital, which killed at least 28 people, including Pakistani soldiers, and injured dozens of others.
The attack was claimed by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), an outlawed separatist group that has targeted Chinese nationals in an effort to undermine the multibillion-dollar Pakistan-China Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects.
The BLA, the largest of several ethnic insurgent groups battling the Pakistani state, alleges that the province’s rich gas and mineral resources are unfairly exploited, a claim the government denies.
“The general public is hereby informed that, under the directives of authorized departments, mobile Internet services have been temporarily suspended in certain areas of Balochistan,” the PTA said in an official statement.
“This measure has been taken to ensure public safety, given the security situation in these areas,” it added.
The PTA statement did not specify the areas where mobile Internet services have been suspended, nor was there any clarification from other departments on whether the government was planning an operation against militants in these regions.
However, mobile Internet has already been down in the province’s Kech, Panjgur, Gwadar, Khuzdar, Loralai, Dukki, Ziarat, Harnai and Zhob districts for the last three days, causing significant hardships for students and the business community in these areas.
“Hundreds of students and businesses have been affected by the mobile Internet suspension,” Abdul Majid Dashti, a lawyer based in Turbat, told Arab News, adding that cellphone Internet had been down for nearly three days in the area.
Sadaqat Baloch, a journalist in Pakistan’s coastal town of Gwadar, which is central to CPEC, said authorities suspended mobile Internet in the area a day after the Quetta railway station bombing.
“People of the Makran region, including Khuzdar, are now deprived of mobile Internet, which has been creating problems for them,” he added.
The provincial government’s spokesperson was unavailable for comment on the recent mobile Internet suspension.
Pakistan suspends mobile internet in Balochistan, citing ‘public safety’ amid rising violence
https://arab.news/9ub4e
Pakistan suspends mobile internet in Balochistan, citing ‘public safety’ amid rising violence
- People in Balochistan say mobile Internet has been down for about three days in different areas
- PTA announcement comes days after a suicide bombing at a crowded railway station in Quetta
Pakistan, Jordan discuss defense cooperation amid flurry of high-level contacts
- Field Marshal Asim Munir hosted Maj Gen Yousef Ahmed A. Al Huneiti of Jordan in Rawalpindi
- Munir visited Amman in October, followed by King Abdullah II’s trip to Pakistan the next month
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir met the chairman of Jordan’s Joint Chiefs of Staff on Thursday to discuss defense and military cooperation, the Pakistani military said in a statement, amid a recent uptick in high-level engagement between the two countries.
Major General Yousef Ahmed A. Al Huneiti, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Jordan Armed Forces, called on Munir at Pakistan’s military headquarters in Rawalpindi, according to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
“During the meeting, both sides discussed matters of mutual interest, regional security dynamics, and avenues for enhanced bilateral defense and military cooperation,” ISPR said.
“Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to strengthening defense ties with Jordan and emphasized the importance of collaborative efforts to address evolving security challenges,” it added.
The meeting follows a series of senior-level interactions between the two countries this year. Munir paid an official visit to Jordan in October, while Jordan’s military leadership has also engaged with Pakistan’s top brass in recent months.
In November, Jordan’s King Abdullah II visited Pakistan for talks with the country’s civilian and military leadership.
Pakistan and Jordan have long maintained cordial relations, including defense cooperation and military training links, though senior-level exchanges have been relatively infrequent.
Both countries were also among eight Muslim-majority states whose top leaders participated in discussions with United States President Donald Trump in September on proposals aimed at ending the war in Gaza and issued joint statements with other countries over the situation in West Asia in recent months.
ISPR said the meeting concluded with a shared resolve to further deepen military-to-military cooperation between Pakistan and Jordan.
