Balochistan: Timeline (Terrorist Activities) -2013

A truck driver, Allahyar was injured in an attack on National Highway near Dasht area of Mastung District, reports Daily Times. According to Levies Force, a Quetta-bound truck, carrying medicines from Karachi, was on its way when unidentified assailants riding a motorbike opened fire on it. Read less...

An officer of the Balochistan Government, Saifuddin Baloch and his driver, were killed and another man was injured when their car was sprayed with bullets in the Besima area of Kharan District, reports Dawn. Read less...

At least three fishermen, identified as Sikandar, Akhtar and Sheri Jan, were shot dead while one Shafiq was injured by unidentified armed assailants in the Pasni town of Gwadar District on January 1, reports Daily Times. Read less...

The warden of Machh jail, Mohammad Ali, who belonged to the Hazara community, was shot dead in Machh bazaar of Bolan District. Read less...

Unknown armed assailants shot dead a man, identified as Dost Muhammad, in Manguchar Bazaar area of Kalat District reports The News. Read less...

A 16-inch-diameter gas pipeline was blown up in the Pir Koh area of Dera Bugti District in Balochistan on January 2, suspending supply to a purification plant in the area, reports Daily Times. According to reports, explosives were planted underneath the main supply line in the Pir Koh area. However, no casualty was reported. Read less...

The past five years have been difficult for Balochistan according to statistics revealed by the Home Department, reports The Express Tribune. Violence in the province has claimed over 2,100 lives and left 3,845 injured in over 3,232 incidents of bomb blasts and rocket attacks in this period. Amidst rising sectarian strife and targeted killings, the government’s inability to deal with the situation appears more jarring than ever. Throughout the province, sectarian killings remain the biggest challenge. From 2008 to 2012, 758 members of the Shia community were killed in 478 incidents. Of these, 338 victims belonged to the Hazara community, indicating that Hazaras remain the prime targets of these aggressions. The province has become a base for a decade-long insurgency as well as a killing field for various sects. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) allegedly keeps targeting Shias throughout Balochistan. Accordingly, officials have beefed up safety measures from Quetta to Taftan and are even planning to hold meetings with Iranian authorities to discuss possible arrangements to facilitate the movement of Hazaras from Marriabad to Hazara Town and Hazar Ganji. The findings also uncover staggering ‘kill and dump’ statistics. Around 570 dead bodies have been found strewn throughout the province, with 370 of the victims belonging to the Baloch community and 89 to the Pashtun community. The rest remain unidentified to this day. Further still, over 402 non-Baloch have been killed in 498 incidents, and over 486 injured in multiple attacks. Not surprisingly, security personnel have also suffered great losses. As many as 340 Frontier Corps personnel and 380 Policemen have lost their lives in the line of duty, and 508 security officials in total have been left wounded. Analysts say that despite the staggering figures, the Provincial Government is yet to review regulations pertaining to the movement of pilgrims under the Travel Agency Act of 1976. In one instance, police decided to refer the investigation of ‘sensitive cases’ to the Crime Investigation Department after the arrest of alleged terrorist Sher Dil of LeJ, also known as Babu, in a bid to curb violence in Balochistan. Read less...

Unidentified militants abducted a trader from Panjgur District. Police said that Ijaz Ahmad was on his way home when militants abducted him and moved to an undisclosed location. Read less...

Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif, talking to lawmakers from Balochistan, on January 4 said that instead of finding a peaceful and lasting solution to the Balochistan issue, the Ayub Khan, Julfikar Ali Bhutto and Pervez Musharraf regime went for military action and that has aggravated the situation in the Province, reports The News. He said that the Balochistan issue is very important for the whole country and a policy should be evolved with a consensus to end deprivations of the province. He said the resolution of the Balochistan issue was in democracy. Read less...

The Balochistan National Conference (BNC), which concluded at the Punjab University (PU) on January 3, adopted a unanimous resolution holding the Federal Government responsible for the current situation of the Province, reports Daily Times. One of the participants, Brigadier (retired) Nadir Mir said the Balochistan issue could only be resolved if “we all consider ourselves Baloch”. According to him, “Baloch nationalism” was not a threat to Pakistan. Read less...

Two brothers, one of them a prayer leader, were shot at in the Sariab Road area of Quetta (Quetta District), the provincial capital of Balochistan, on January 4, reports Daily Times. Police sources said that unidentified armed motorcyclists opened indiscriminate fire on the brothers, identified as Maulana Israr Ahmed and Akhlaq Ahmed, leaving them injured. The attackers managed to escape. Read less...

Unidentified armed assailants abducted spiritual leader Mualana Wali Muhammad from the Satellite Town area in the morning of January 4. According to Police, Wali Muhammad was on his way home after offering Fajar prayers when gunmen took him away. Read less...

Unidentified assailants opened fire and injured a local trader, Abdul Rahim, in the Pashtoonabad area of Quetta, the Provincial capital of Balochistan, on January 4, Daily Times reports. Police said that unidentified armed motorcyclists came at the shop of Abdul Rahim. “The armed assailants opened fire at the shopkeeper, leaving him seriously injured,” Police said, adding that the attackers fled right after the incident. Read less...

Unidentified militants opened fire and killed four passengers and injured 10 others traveling in Jaffar Express near Kohsar area of Kachhi in Bolan District on January 5, reports Daily Times. Official sources in the Pakistan Railways said that Jaffar Express was on its way to Quetta from Rawalpindi when it was attacked by the unidentified militants in the mountainous area of Bolan. Read less...

One Abdullah was killed and three persons — Ehsan Reza, Arif Hussain and Latif — were seriously injured when the car they were travelling in came under fire on Spiny Road in Quetta (Quetta District), the provincial capital of Balochistan, on January 6, reports Dawn. The victims belonged to the Hazara community and Police described the incident as a sectarian attack. Read less...

A bomb exploded in a ground near Jan Mohammad road in which a man and a woman were injured. Read less...

A hand-grenade was hurled into a tea shop on Sariab Road in which two people were wounded. Read less...

An engineer was killed while three other persons, including a Police official, sustained injuries in an explosion on Sariab Road, reports Daily Times. According to Police, the deceased has been identified as Nazir Ahmed Qambarani, sub engineer of Balochistan Development Authority (BDA), and the injured as Abdul Salam Bangulzai, Sajjad Ahmed Raisani and Assistant Sub Inspector of Police Aftab Ahmad Parkani. Read less...

According to Levies officials, unidentified armed assailants fired indiscriminately at two tankers carrying LPG in Shiehkwasil area in Mastung District. Three people were killed and another was injured in the firing. “The deceased and injured were residents of Punjab,” Levies officials said. Read less...

Levies force said a person was shot dead by unidentified assailants. However, the incident site was not mentioned. Read less...

One person was wounded in a bomb blast on Raisani Road in Quetta (Quetta District), the provincial capital of Balochistan. “The blast damaged electricity pole and smashed windowpanes of nearby buildings,” a police official said, adding that three to four kilogrammes of explosives were used in the blast. According to Police sources, the explosive device was fixed with an electricity pylon at Raisani Road, yards away from Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Raisani’s family residence. Read less...

Two people were killed and another was wounded in Pishin (Pishin District). Levies sources said that a vehicle was passing through Pishin Bypass area when armed assailants opened fire on the vehicle killing one person and two injuring two others. Read less...

A dead body was found in Mand area of Kech town (Kech District). The deceased was identified as Abdul Sattar. Read less...

A person was killed by unidentified assailants in front of Madrassah Darul Uloom, Sariab Road. Read less...

Abdul Aziz, a worker of the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP- M), was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants at the Eastern Bypass. The party sources said that deceased was a nephew of the former BNP-M general secretary Habib Jalib. Read less...

An Intelligence Agency Official was shot dead by unidentified militants in the Kharotabad area of Quetta (Quetta District), the provincial capital of Balochistan on January 9, reports Daily Times. Read less...

Unidentified armed assailants shot dead a trader, identified as Manzoor Shah, near Sirat Chowk of Khuzdar town (Khuzdar District). Read less...

Unidentified militants attacked the office of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Chattan Road of Panjgur town (Panjgur District) with hand grenades. A Police source said that nobody was present in the office when the attack was carried out and nobody got hurt. No group had claimed responsibility for the grenade attack. Read less...

At least 82 persons were killed and over 200 persons were injured in two separate bomb blasts in Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, on January 10, reports The News. At least 70 people were killed and over 160 injured in an attack targeting Shias at Alamdar Road in Quetta late in the evening. A suicide bomber blew himself up inside a snooker club on Alamdar Road, which has two Shia prayer halls and a sizeable population of Shia Hazaras. Another blast took place outside the snooker club 10 minutes later. The twin blasts resulted in the death of as many as 70 people on the spot, most of them from the Hazrara Shia community. Deputy Superintendent Police (DSP), Mujahid Hussain, Station House Officer (SHO), Zafar Ali, Samaa cameraman Imran Sheikh, a reporter of the same channel, Saifur Rehman, and four Edhi volunteers were among those killed. Police experts said that more than 125 kilograms of explosives were used in the blasts. “It was the largest ever bomb to have hit the city,” said an unnamed senior Police Official. Read less...

Balochistan Governor Nawab Zulfiqar Ali Magsi expressed his displeasure over the deteriorating law and order situation in the Province. “We have lost the right to govern,” Magsi said. Read less...

Daily Times reports that two drivers were killed and 10 NATO containers were damaged when several rockets attacks were carried out on a terminal near Hazara Ganji, on the outskirts of Quetta, in the night of January 11. According to Police, unidentified armed men fired four rockets targeting NATO containers which were en route to Kandahar (Afghanistan) from Karachi (Sindh) and were temporary parked at the terminal. “Two drivers, identified as Abid and Waheed Shah, received multiple wounds in the attack and died,” a Police official said, adding that the assailants also opened indiscriminate fire that lasted for about half an hour. Read less...

The Balochistan Government once against gave the Police powers to the Frontier Corps (FC) to maintain law and order in the Province. A notification issued here stated that the FC was given Police powers for one month in Quetta to maintain law and order. According to the notification, the FC would act under the supervision of the civil administration and would follow the restrictions and conditions laid down in the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898. Previously, the Government had withdrawn the Police powers from the FC on December 3, 2012. Read less...

The death toll in January 10 twin blasts near a snooker club at Alamdar Road in Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, increased to 105 on January 11, reports The Times of India. As reported earlier, 70 persons were killed in the blasts. According to reports, two blats occurred at around 8.50pm, one inside a snooker club and the other outside in a car, within a 10-minute gap in a Shia-Hazara community dominated neighbourhood, killing 105 people and wounding 169. The dead included 25 rescue workers, nine Police officers and three journalists. The building housing the club was razed in the blast. In the first incident, a suicide bomber blew himself up inside the snooker club. Bomb disposal squad officers said an estimated six to seven kilograms of explosives were used by the suicide bomber. As police, rescuers and media persons rushed to the site, another bomb fixed to a vehicle parked nearby went off. An estimated 100 kilograms of explosives were used in the second blast. The Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LJ), claimed responsibility for the attacks. In calls made to local journalists, LeJ spokesmen Bakar Saddiq said the first blast was carried out by a suicide bomber and the second was a bomb planted in a car that was triggered by remote control. Read less...

The News reported that a complete shutter-down strike was observed in the Quetta to condemn the bombings on the call of the Anjuman-e-Tajiran Balochistan, endorsed by nearly all politico-nationalists parties. Read less...

The United Baluch Army, a separatist group, claimed responsibility for the attack on Security Forces at Bacha Khan Chowk in Quetta that took place around 3.50pm, prior to the twin blasts at Alamdar Road. An estimated 25 kilograms of explosives were used in the bomb. As many as 13 vehicles were destroyed in the blast. The explosion also caused damage to nearby shops, offices and homes. Read less...

A blast killed a child and injured another person in Brewery road area of Quetta (Quetta District), the provincial capital of Balochistan in the night of January 12, reports Dawn. Wazir Khan Nasar, the Deputy Inspector General said that the militants planted an improvised explosive device near an internet cafe in Brewery road area. “The blast killed a passerby child and injured another person,” he said. Nasar said the blast caused damage to the internet cafe and other nearby shops. Read less...

The Federal Government of Pakistan on January 13 accepted to the demands of Quetta bombing victims and protesters across the country and announced to impose Governor’s rule in Balochistan, effective from January 14 (today), reported Daily Times. Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf announced in principal to invoke Article 234 of the constitution and impose Governor’s rule in the province, as demanded by the bereaved families and political and social circles. He assured the protesters that the Federal Government would fully cooperate with the Governor. He said that false cases registered against members of the Shia community would also be withdrawn. Read less...

Pakistani authorities imposed Section 144, a ban on pillion riding (two people sharing a motorcycle) across Balochistan in the wake of a spike in terror-related incidents, according to a Home Department statement, Central Asia Online reports on January 15. Read less...

Unidentified armed assailants injured a man, identified as Rehmatullah near the Western Bypass of Quetta (Quetta District), the provincial capital of Balochistan. Read less...

Unidentified armed assailants shot dead a man, identified as Faqir Muhammad, in Nasirabad town of same District on January 14, reports Daily Times. Read less...

A Policeman, identified as Muhammad Naeem, was injured in an explosion in Bakra Mandi area of Eastern bypass, on the outskirts Quetta, the Provincial Capital of Balochistan. Read less...

At least three Police personnel were injured in a bomb explosion in Chaman area of Qilla Abdullah District, a boarding area with Afghanistan. Read less...

Five Policeman, identified as Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), in Crime Investigation Department (CID), Naseem Baloch, Constable Tahir, Constable Noor Ahmad, Constable Mohsin Ali and Constable Abdul Whaid were killed in a remote-controlled blast in Bonistan area of Panjgur District on January 15, reports Daily Times. A Police official, Atiqur Rehman, said that a Police vehicle was patrolling in the Bonistan area when the remote-controlled device went off. Read less...

The Balochistan Assembly collectively adopted two resolutions on January 15, which rejected imposition of Governor’s rule in the Province as an undemocratic move, demanded reversal and called for a judicial inquiry into the killing of Shia Hazaras in bomb blasts on January 10, reports Dawn. The movers and supporters of the resolution said that it was for the fifth time that an elected Government of Balochistan had been dismissed by the centre. They warned Islamabad against pushing to the wall the people and political parties which stand for parliamentary politics and democracy. Read less...

Militants attacked a Frontier Corps (FC) check post with rockets in Panjgur District. No loss of life was reported. No group claimed responsibility for the incident. Read less...

Unidentified armed assailants abducted a man, identified as Mir Hassan, from the Usta Muhammad area of Jaffarabad District on January 16, reports Daily Times. Read less...

Armed assailants shot dead the principal of a private school, identified as Ikram Mengal, along with his five-year old son, in Kharan District on January 18, reports Dawn. Read less...

The Frontier Corps (FC) killed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) ‘commander’ Rashid Shahwani and his companion Shahjahan during a targeted operation against militants in Mastung District, reports Daily Times. FC personnel recovered a large number of weapons and explosive material during the operation. Read less...

Armed assailants on a motorcycle opened fire on a rickshaw in Sariab Road of Quetta (Quetta District), killing its occupants, the driver and a woman passenger, on the spot on January 19, reports Daily Times. The driver of the rickshaw was identified as Mula Dad, whereas the identity of the women could not be ascertained. Read less...

Two brothers were killed in a land mine explosion near Khameesa Khan Bugti Village of Quetta. According to the Police, the deceased were identified as Khameesa Khan and Essa Khan. Read less...

Quetta (provincial capital of Balochistan) Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) of Mir Zubair Mehmood on January 20 confirmed that three senior Police officials arrested by Frontier Corps (FC) were involved in kidnapping of a resident of Dalbandin for ransom, reports Daily Times. Addressing a press conference, Mir Zubair said, “The three officers, including Superintendent of Police (SP) and two Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) of CID Police Quetta and three other personnel have been suspended from service and an FIR has been registered against them for kidnapping Abdul Quddoos, a resident of Dalbandin, headquarters of Chagai district, for ransom.” He said that CID Police Quetta abducted Abdul Quddoos on January 16 and later demanded ransom from his family. He said that an FC team raided the CID office, recovered the abducted person and arrested the police officials. “The FC has handed over the arrested police officials and three other personnel to the Quetta Police and a case against the all accused has been registered with Bijli Ghar Police Station Quetta,” the CCPO said. He said that the Home Department had issued a notification for setting up a committee to conduct inquiry into the involvement of CID Police officials in kidnapping a person for ransom. He said that the committee would work under his supervision. Read less...

FC personnel recovered a bomb and explosives from Goth Ghulam Kathore area of Sibi District. Read less...

Security Forces (SFs) recovered two bullet-riddled bodies from the Pir Koh area of Dera Bugti District in Balochistan on January 21, reports Daily Times. The deceased were identified as Bahian and Raza Muhammad. They were shot dead and dumped in a deserted place. Read less...

The Frontier Corps (FC) recovered explosive materials from the Notal area of Nasirabad District and arrested a person. The recovery includes 10 kilogramme bomb and four kilogrammes of explosives. Read less...

The Provincial Government has set up a new force for conducting operations against elements involved in cases of terrorism, target killing and kidnapping for ransom, Dawn reported on January 23. “The special force will initially comprise 300 personnel,” Provincial Home Secretary Akbar Hussain Durrani said while presiding over a meeting of the divisional commissioners and senior officials in Quetta on January 22. Mr Durrani said the force would help stop terrorist activities, target killings and kidnapping for ransom in the province. He said the government had also decided to organise Levies Force on modern lines and its personnel would be given special training and equipped with latest weapons to fight terrorists and other criminals in a better way. Read less...

A cleric belonging to Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam – Fazl (JUI-F), Mufti Rehmatullah, was shot dead in Kakar colony of Quetta (Quetta District) in Balochistan on January 23, reports Dawn. Unidentified assailants on a motorcycle opened fire at Mufti Rehmatullah, the prayer leader of a local mosque, leaving him seriously injured. Police took the cleric to hospital where he died. Mufti Rehmatullah was prayer leader of Mian Khan Mosque in Kakar colony and a leader of JUI-F. Read less...

At least 10 suspects were rounded up by Frontier Corps (FC) in targeted operations in Killi Kamalo, Sariab, Hudda and other parts of Quetta, reports Daily Times. Read less...

Police defused an anti-tank mine near Police residential quarters on the outskirts of Khuzdar, averting a major tragedy. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Khuzdar Range Fasihuddin said unidentified militants had planted the mine in the Khatan area to blow up the Police quarters. After receiving a tip-off, he said, the Police and bomb disposal squad defused the mine containing 18 kilograms of explosives. No arrest was reported and security beefed up in and around Khuzdar town. Read less...

Security personnel recovered a landmine weighing about five kilograms in Ormara of Gwadar District and called in the Bomb Disposal Squad which defused it. Read less...

Security personnel stopped a suspicious vehicle at Gadang check post located on Quetta-Chaman highway and seized an explosive device weighing 20 kilograms. However, no arrest was made in this connection. Read less...

A Government centre housing the offices of National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) and Benazir Income Support Programme was targeted with an improvised explosive device (IED) in the border town of Chaman in Qilla Abdullah District, reports Dawn. According to Levies sources, the IED in a fertiliser bag was planted along the wall of the centre near the Frontier Corps (FC) Headquarters. However, no loss of life was reported in the blast. Read less...

At least three members of a members of pro-government tribal militia, including one of its ‘commanders’, were killed and four others were abducted when Baloch insurgents attacked their camp in Tilli Mat area of Dera Bugti District in Balochistan on January 27, reports The Express Tribune. According to Balochistan Levies sources, dozens of armed insurgents assaulted the post of the tribal militia post in the Tilli Mat area, killing at least three of its members. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Read less...

Militants fired rockets at FC checkposts in Dolwai area of Barkhan District and Kahan area of Kohlu District. No casualty was reported. Read less...

The bomb disposal squad defused an IED planted in a bicycle in Sariab area of the provincial capital, Quetta. Read less...

Two personnel of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) were among three persons killed in Pasni in Gwadar District on January 28, reports Daily Times. Station House Officer Imam Baloch said that the PAF personnel were shopping at the Zareen Markeet when armed assailants opened indiscriminate fire on them. Resultantly, three people, including two PAF personnel and a shopkeeper, were killed, while a PAF official sustained bullet injuries. Read less...

Unidentified assailants shot dead a man, identified as Muhammad Jamal, at Al-Faisal Chowk in Khuzdar District. Read less...

Two Police constables, identified as Ali Dad Hazara and Shamir Baloch, were shot dead on Sabzal road of Quetta (Quetta District), the provincial capital of Balochistan, on January 29, reports Dawn. A little-known militant outfit, Jaish-ul-Islam (JuI), claimed responsibility for the attack. Police said that it appeared to be a sectarian attack. Read less...

A man, identified as Abdul Kareem Khilji, was shot dead on Sariab Road near Tariq Hospital of Quetta (Quetta District), the provincial capital of Balochistan. Read less...

Another person, identified as Ghulam Qadir Zehri, was shot dead in main Khuzdar bazaar of Khuzdar District. Read less...

Four persons were shot dead in Dera Bugti District. Dera Bugti Tehsildar (revenue official) Bahram Khan Bugti said that unidentified assailants fired on four people in Nok Tarani area near Pir Koh, killing them on the spot. Read less...

Security Forces seized cache of explosives from a car at Balili check post in the outskirts of Quetta. 400 detonators, an explosive wire, a 200-meter roll, one explosive piece of cotton weighing 125 kilograms and 1500 kilograms of ball bearings were recovered. Read less...

Three bullet-riddled bodies were found in between the mountains at Eastern Bypass in the proximity of Bussa Mandi in Quetta. “They were shot in the head and look like Afghans,” Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Bahsir Ahmed Brahvi said, and added that their hands and feet were tied. He said the bodies appeared to be three days old. The deceased could not be identified. Read less...

A man, Abdul Rasheed, a barber, was killed and another was injured when armed assailants opened fire at a barber’s shop on Jail road in Huda area of Quetta (Quetta Districts), the provincial capital of Balochistan, reports Dawn. Read less...

At least six militants and a ‘commander’ of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) were killed and several others were arrested by the Frontier Corps (FC) in a targeted operation in the Mangochar area of Kalat District on January 31, reports Daily Times Read less...