QUETTA: At least nine people, including policemen, were injured after clashes broke out between police and protesters from an ethnic Baloch rights group, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, late Friday night in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta, officials said.
The BYC accused law enforcement agencies of forcibly arresting its three central committee members on Wednesday and called for a protest on Sariab Road in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province which has recent witnessed a spike in separatist attacks.
The call for protest followed a clash between protesters and the police after people attempted to take away bodies of deceased militants who were killed after the Jaffar Express train hijacking last week, according to authorities. The provincial government lodged a police case against the protesters who stormed the mortuary at Civil Hospital Quetta and booked 12 protesters on Thursday.
Last week, militants from the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) separatist group hijacked the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express passenger train in the rugged, mountainous Bolan region, with more than 400 passengers onboard. The hours-long siege ended after Pakistan launched an operation and killed 33 militants. The deadliest train assault resulted in the killing of over 30 Pakistani security personnel and civilians.
“The Baloch Yakjehti Committee blocked highways in Quetta and the police took legal action against the protesters who were blocking the roads,” Shahid Rind, a spokesman for the Balochistan government, said on Friday.
“The protesters pelted stones at police and tortured policemen, injuring several cops and civilians.”
The BYC was staging a sit-in on Sariab Road with bodies of three protesters, which it alleged were killed by gunfire from the authorities.
Rind said the government was ascertaining whose bodies BYC placed in their protest: “It is impossible to know the causes of death of the bodies unless the bodies were brought to the hospital for medico-legal procedure.”
Dr. Arbab Kamran Kasi, head of Trauma Center Quetta told Arab News, they had received nine injured persons, including policemen.
“Six injured with minor wounds were discharged, two are being treated and one was referred to the Combined Military Hospital,” he shared.
Dr. Mahrang Baloch, a veteran human rights activist who heads the BYC, accused police of killing three protesters by shooting at a peaceful rally in Quetta.
“We called a peaceful sit-in today on the Sariab Road in Quetta but the police attacked our protesters,” she told Arab News. “Now we have camped at Sariab Road with the bodies of three slain protesters and we won’t end the protest until justice has been provided to our slain workers.”
The office of the Quetta commissioner denied reports of firing by authorities.
“No shelling was carried out by the administration during the BYC protest. No firearms or rubber bullets were used,” it said in a statement. “Only water cannons (non-lethal and safe method) were used to disperse the crowd.”
It said the administration respects the right to peaceful protest, however, lawlessness and attacks on state institutions cannot be permitted.
Amnesty International, a global human rights watchdog, voiced alarm over the reports of deaths of three protesters and nearly a dozen injuries following live ammunition fired by authorities against the protesters in Quetta, describing it as “a shocking indictment of the Pakistani authorities’ utter disregard for human life.”
“In blatant violation of the right to protest, the authorities conducted mass arrests and fired tear gas before resorting to unlawful use of lethal weapons against the unarmed protesters. Mobile networks in the city remain suspended, hindering free flow of information,” it said on X.
“Amnesty International urges the Pakistani authorities to immediately stop the reckless crackdown against the peaceful protesters and guarantee the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and expression, in line with Pakistan’s international human rights obligations.”
Balochistan is Pakistan’s largest province by land but its most backward by almost all economic and social indicators. For decades it has been plagued by a low-level insurgency by militants fighting for a greater share of the province’s wealth.
Separatist militants, such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) accuse the central government of denying locals a share of Balochistan’s mineral resources. The federal government and the military strongly deny these accusations, and say they have launched several projects in the province to support its development.
Violence by Baloch separatist factions, primarily the BLA, killed about 300 people last year, according to official statistics, marking an escalation in the decades-long conflict.
At least nine injured as police, ethnic Baloch protesters clash in Pakistan’s southwest
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At least nine injured as police, ethnic Baloch protesters clash in Pakistan’s southwest
- The clashes erupted during a protest by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee rights group over the arrest of three of its key members by authorities this week
- Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by land, has been the site of an insurgency for decades and has witnessed a surge in violence in recent months
Fifteen militants, two soldiers killed in military operations in Pakistan’s northwest
- Pakistani security forces carried out three separate raids in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province
- PM Sharif praises security forces for successful operations, pays tribute to the dead soldiers
ISLAMABAD: Two soldiers and 15 militants were killed as Pakistani security forces launched three separate operations in the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said on Saturday.
Pakistani militant network, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has intensified attacks in the region in recent years. Pakistan refers to TTP fighters as “khwarij,” a term rooted in Islamic history for an extremist sect that rebelled against authority and declared other Muslims to be apostates.
“On 25-26 April 2025, fifteen khwarij were killed in three separate engagements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province,” the ISPR said in a statement.
The operations were conducted in Karak, North Waziristan and South Waziristan districts.
In Karak, eight militants were killed during an intelligence-based operation.
“In an another operation conducted in North Waziristan District, four khwarij were killed by the security forces,” the statement continued. “However, during the intense fire exchange, two brave sons of soil, Lance Naik Usman Mohmand (age: 28 years, resident of District Charsadda) and Sepoy Imran Khan (age: 26 years, resident of District Kurram) having fought gallantly, paid the ultimate sacrifice and embraced shahadat [martyrdom].”
The ISPR said that in South Waziristan’s Gomal Zam area, three more militants were killed. Weapons and ammunition were recovered from the dead militants, who, according to the statement, were involved in “numerous terrorist activities.”
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif praised the security forces for the successful operations and paid tribute to the soldiers who died.
“The entire nation stands with the security forces in the fight against terrorism,” he said in a statement circulated by his office.
Pakistan has seen a surge in militant violence, particularly in its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and southwestern Balochistan, since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021.
Islamabad accuses TTP factions operating from Afghanistan of fueling unrest, a charge the Afghan Taliban denies.
Pakistan requests extra 10 billion yuan on China swap line, says finance minister
- Muhammad Aurangzeb says Pakistan aims to diversify its lending base by issuing panda bond
- He expects IMF board to approve first loan review, climate resilience disbursement early next month
WASHINGTON: Pakistan has put in a request to China to augment its existing swap line by 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion), Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said, adding he expected the country would launch a Panda bond before year-end.
Pakistan has an existing 30 billion yuan swap line already, Aurangzeb told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group spring meetings in Washington.
“From our perspective, getting to 40 billion renminbi would be a good place to move toward ... we just put in that request,” Aurangzeb said.
China’s central bank has been promoting currency swap lines with a raft of emerging economies, including the likes of Argentina and Sri Lanka.
Pakistan has also made progress on issuing its first panda bond — debt issued on China’s domestic bond market, denominated in yuan. Talks with the presidents of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) — the two lenders who are in line to provide credit enhancements for the issue — had been constructive, he said.
“We want to diversify our lending base and we have made some good progress around that — we are hoping that during this calendar year we can do an initial print,” he said.
Meanwhile, Aurangzeb expected the IMF executive board to sign off in early May on the Staff Level Agreement on its new $1.3 billion arrangement under a climate resilience loan program as well as the first review of the ongoing $7 billion bailout program.
Getting the green light from the IMF board would trigger a $1 billion payout under the program, which the country secured in 2024 and has played a key role in stabilizing Pakistan’s economy.
Asked about the economic fallout from the tensions with India following the killing of 26 men at a tourist site earlier this month, Aurangzeb said it was “not going to be helpful.”
The attack triggered outrage and grief in India, along with calls for action against neighbor Pakistan, whom New Delhi accuses of funding and encouraging terrorism in Kashmir, a region both nations claim and have fought two wars over.
After the attack, India and Pakistan unleashed a raft of measures against each other, with Pakistan closing its airspace to Indian airlines and suspending trade ties, and India suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty that regulates water-sharing from the Indus River and its tributaries.
Trade flows between the two countries had already fallen off sharply following past frictions and totalled just $1.2 billion last year.
Aurangzeb estimated growth around 3% in the current financial year which ends in June 2025, and in the 4-5% range next year, with a view to hitting 6% thereafter.
Pakistan engages Egypt, Turkiye, China after rejecting India’s accusations over Kashmir attack
- Ishaq Dar reaffirms Pakistan’s commitment to safeguarding its national interests in his conversations
- China and Pakistan agree to have close communication, coordination over the regional developments
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Foreign Minister (FM) Ishaq Dar on Saturday engaged with his counterparts from Egypt and Turkiye and held a meeting with China’s envoy as Islamabad seeks to rally diplomatic support after rejecting India’s accusations over a deadly militant attack on tourists in Kashmir.
At least 26 people were killed earlier this week when gunmen opened fire at a popular tourist site in Indian-administered Kashmir, in one of the deadliest attacks on civilians in the disputed region in decades.
India blamed Pakistan for orchestrating the attack amid calls for retaliatory strikes from its media. Islamabad denied any involvement, warning of a “befitting response” to any escalation and offering a neutral investigation into the incident.
India has already unilaterally suspended the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), a landmark river water distribution mechanism signed in 1960, expelled Pakistani diplomats and shut down a major land border crossing.
Dar discussed recent regional developments over the phone with Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty during the day.
“DPM/FM Dar firmly rejected India’s baseless allegations, condemned its unilateral actions, and false propaganda against Pakistan,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement after the two officials held the conversation.
“He reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to safeguarding its national interests while promoting regional peace and stability,” it added.
In a separate call with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Dar briefed him on decisions taken by Pakistan’s National Security Committee in response to India’s accusations.
He thanked Turkiye for its consistent support to Pakistan at international forums, and the two sides agreed to maintain close coordination as tensions rise in the region.
Earlier in the day, the deputy prime minister met Chinese Ambassador Jiang Zaidong in Islamabad.
Reaffirming their “all-weather strategic partnership,” both Pakistan and China agreed to maintain close communication and coordination, said another statement.
Dar’s conversation with Jiang comes at a time when Pakistan has rejected India’s move to suspend the IWT, warning that any attempt to block waters from flowing into Pakistan would constitute an act of war and set a dangerous precedent for New Delhi, given India’s own reliance on rivers originating from China.
Pakistan PM speaks to Iranian president after deadly port blast, discusses regional tensions
- The explosion that killed four took place at Iran’s largest commercial port in the southern Bandar Abbas city
- The blast, likely caused by a fire at a hazardous materials depot, was felt by people within 50-kilometer radius
KARACHI: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday, expressing condolences over a deadly explosion at Iran’s Shahid Rajaee port and discussing recent regional developments, including tensions with India.
At least four people were killed and more than 500 injured when a powerful blast ripped through the port in the southern city of Bandar Abbas earlier in the day, according to Iranian state media.
Authorities in Tehran said the explosion likely originated from a fire at a hazardous materials storage depot, with footage showing thick black smoke rising from the site and helicopters deployed to control the blaze.
“I spoke to my brother, Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian @drpezeshkian, President of Iran this evening, to express my deep shock at the tragic explosion at Shahid Rajaee Port, Bandar Abbas,” Sharif said in a social media post, adding that he expressed solidarity with the neighboring state on the loss of lives and prayed for early recovery of the injured.
The Shahid Rajaee port, located in Hormozgan province, is Iran’s largest commercial port. Iranian President Pezeshkian has ordered an investigation into the explosion, dispatching the interior minister to oversee the situation.
The blast caused significant damage to port infrastructure and was felt up to 50 kilometers away, according to Iranian news agencies.
During the call, Sharif also briefed Pezeshkian on Pakistan’s position regarding India’s recent actions following a deadly attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 people earlier this week.
India has blamed Pakistan-based groups for the assault, expelled Pakistani diplomats and suspended the decades-old Indus Waters Treaty.
Islamabad has denied any involvement, offered a neutral investigation and warned that the use of water as a weapon was unacceptable and would be resisted.
Sharif said Pakistan desired regional peace and condemned militant violence in all forms and manifestations. He also reaffirmed Islamabad’s support for the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination as enshrined in UN resolutions.
President Pezeshkian thanked Sharif for Pakistan’s message of solidarity and invited him to visit Tehran, according to the statement.
Pakistan and Iran share a long border and maintain complex political and economic ties.
Only a day earlier, Tehran had offered to mediate between Pakistan and India following the Kashmir attack, expressing readiness to help de-escalate tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors.
– With input from AFP
Pakistan’s forex reserves triple since early 2023 as central bank targets $14 billion
- Central bank governor says Pakistan’s reserves have seen both qualitative and quantitative improvement
- Governor Jamil Ahmed was briefing executives of global financial and investment institutions in the US
KARACHI: Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves have more than tripled since early 2023, driven by a surplus in the external current account rather than fresh borrowing, the top central bank official said, according to a statement on Saturday, as the country targets $14 billion in reserves by June.
Pakistan’s forex reserves had touched critically low levels two years ago, giving it an import cover of less than a month. Faced with the threat of a sovereign debt default, the country secured a $3 billion short-term International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout, tightened fiscal and monetary policies, restricted imports and allowed greater exchange rate flexibility.
Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, Jameel Ahmad, told senior executives from global financial and investment institutions on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington the country’s external buffers had seen a “substantial qualitative as well as quantitative improvement” since then, as he briefed them about the current economic situation.
“Unlike previous episodes of reserve build-up, the ongoing rise in external buffers is not due to any further accumulation of external debt,” he said. “In fact, Pakistan’s public sector external debt, both in absolute terms and as a percent of GDP, has declined since June 2022.”
Ahmad added that the central bank had been able to strengthen reserves through foreign exchange purchases in the open market, supported by a current account surplus.
“The SBP is targeting to increase [forex] reserves to $14 billion by June 2025,” he said.
Ahmad said Pakistan had made tangible progress in stabilizing its economy, crediting a prudent monetary policy and sustained fiscal consolidation efforts for the improvement.
He informed that headline inflation had declined sharply over the past two years, reaching a multi-decade low of 0.7 percent in March 2025, while core inflation had also dropped from above 22 percent to a single digit and was expected to moderate further in the coming months.
