Balochistan drifts back to worst violence

ISLAMABAD: Balochistan has drifted back to the worst violence of its history after a slight improvement in the preceding year despite military offences helping achieve relative stability in other parts of the country, as per official statistics exclusively made available with this correspondent.

More than 286 gun and bomb attacks were recorded in the province last year compared to 226 incidents in 2013.

The worst factor is that the Islamic State extremists’ militia (Daesh) has shaken the province by executing three back-to-back deadly attacks in the province’s history by targetting law enforcers, shrines and politicians in past seven months.

The province witnessed 1,647 incidents of gun, bomb and suicide attacks in past six years, official documents further revealed that over 2,105 people were killed and 4,089 injured in these incidents during this period. Around 1,000 bullet-ridden bodies were recovered from various parts of the province in past six years, the documents revealed.

Official statistics showed that the current year witnessed around 80 incidents of bomb attacks. But 2016 remained the worst one as the province witnessed 281 target/sectarian/terror incidents which caused killing of 331 innocent people and injuring 670 people. Some 418 people died and 596 injured in 316 terror incidents in the province in 2012. More than 530 innocent people died and 1,162 were injured in 246 incidents in 2013, 275 died and 731 injured in 281 incidents in 2014, 202 people died and 310 injured in 326 incidents in 2015.

Official statistics further revealed that the militants targetted Frontier Corps’ personnel 388 times while police personnel faced 251 incidents during this period. Settlers witnessed 116 attacks while 128 incidents were recorded as sectarian attacks. Around 500 miscellaneous incidents were also recorded in the province in past six years.

The nexus of Daesh and the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) further deepened in the province after the Islamic State took responsibility for the Mastung attack which targetted Senate Deputy Chairperson Abdul Ghafoor Haidri’s convey on May 12. Before this attack, Daesh had claimed responsibility of brutal attack against lawyers in Quetta and a shrine in the remote district of Khuzdar. The LeJ had also established nexus with the Jaesh-e-Islam and Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan in the area. Akram Zehri, Ain-uz-Zaman Akhunzada and Shafiq Rind were leading the militants in Quetta, Mastung and Bolan, official documents showed.

Three most wanted terrorists also belonged to Mastung district. Muhammad Dilshad Bangulzai, who earned Rs1 million on his head, is a local commander of LeJ. He is an absconder and involved in the planning of suicide attack on Imam Bargah Kallan, Quetta. Ghulam Farooq Bangulzai, who has head money of Rs2 million, was trained by Riaz Basra (killed). He was involved in recruiting terrorists from Balochistan on the directions of LeJ leadership. He was once reportedly in Balochistan Liberation Army’s Kabo Ferrari Camp, Mastung district. Abid Ali having head money of Rs2 million is commanding LeJ in Quetta. He was declared absconder by the forces years back.

Meanwhile, Balochistan security forces claimed that they had arrested over 24,277 criminals and killed 474 criminals under National Action Plan. Under Peaceful Balochistan Package, around 1,635 ferraris surrendered since the programme announced in the province by the then commander southern command, Lt General Nasser Khan Janjua, in 2016. The police registered 104 cases against those who misused loud speaker laws while security forces arrested 87 clerics on violating these laws. The forces also arrested 42 people who were holding hate material, by sealing 25 shops where 383 items and 1,200 books were also confiscated. 

The story was originally published in The News