QUETTA: Two policemen were killed in a drive-by shooting in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, police said on Wednesday, as insurgents stepp up attacks in the resource-rich region bordering Afghanistan and Iran.

The shooting underscores the worsening security situation in Balochistan — Pakistan’s largest but least-developed province — where separatist and other militant groups have intensified assaults on police and security forces in recent months, targeting officials and infrastructure linked to the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

The latest attack took place in Killi Ghareeb Abad near the Nushki city bypass, close to the Afghan border. It was the second assault on police in Balochistan’s Rakhshan division in less than a week, following the killing of senior officer Muhammad Qasim in Kharan district on Friday.

“Unknown armed men riding on a motorbike targeted the policemen identified as Ubaid Ullah and Abdul Razzaq who were going to perform their duties,” Nushki Station House Officer Zaheer Baloch told Arab News. “We have initiated an investigation and a search operation has started to hunt down the attackers.”

No group has claimed responsibility.

Balochistan, home to vast mineral reserves and key CPEC routes, has seen several major incidents this year, including the hijacking of a passenger train in March and a suicide bombing in Khuzdar in May that killed several children traveling to school.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s security forces killed a militant in an operation in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, destroying several hideouts and tunnels used by insurgents, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported.

The intelligence-based operation in the Shahi Tangi forest of Bajaur district led to an intense exchange of fire in which several militants were injured but managed to flee, the report said.

“During the operation, weapons, explosive materials and communication equipment used by Khwarij were also recovered,” Radio Pakistan said. 

Militant attacks across KP have surged since November 2022, when a fragile truce between the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and Islamabad collapsed.

In recent months, Pakistan has accused India of supporting anti-state groups and Afghanistan of allowing its territory to be used for cross-border attacks. Both New Delhi and Kabul deny the allegations.