Pakistani security forces killed seven insurgents during a raid on a militant hideout in the restive southwestern province of Balochistan, the military said Friday.
The operation took place Wednesday in the remote Sherani district, just a day after a car bomb blast outside the paramilitary headquarters in Quetta killed at least 10 people and injured 30.
Troops exchanged gunfire with the militants before recovering weapons, ammunition and explosives, according to a military statement. The slain fighters were identified as members of “Fitna Al-Khawarij” — a term used by authorities to refer to the banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and other separatist outfits.
The military also alleged the insurgents received backing from India but offered no evidence. Pakistan has long accused New Delhi of aiding separatists in Balochistan and Taliban fighters in the country — claims India consistently denies.
Balochistan has for decades witnessed a simmering separatist insurgency, along with attacks from the Pakistani Taliban and the outlawed BLA, which demand independence from Islamabad.
Security forces continue to conduct intelligence-driven operations nationwide, particularly in conflict-prone areas. On Thursday night, a roadside bomb targeted a police vehicle in Peshawar, the capital of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, wounding eight people, including four officers, police said.
