Naqvi holds India responsible for spate of attacks in Balochistan; ISPR says 92 terrorists killed
Key developments
- Interior minister says India behind the attacks; accuses country of providing support to terrorists
- ISPR says 92 terrorists killed; 18 civilians, 15 security personnel martyred
- ISPR says attacks were orchestrated and directed by terrorist ring leaders operating from outside Pakistan
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Saturday held India responsible for a spate of attacks in Balochistan, while the military’s media affairs said that 92 terrorists were killed as security forces responded to the onslaught.
Speaking to the media alongside Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti on Saturday night, he said, “These were not normal terrorists. India is behind these attacks. I can tell you for sure that India planned these attacks along with these terrorists.”
He said that authorities would go after every single one of those involved and the “masters behind them”.
“We will expose them in the world — the face with which they meet the world and the face with which they support terrorists,” he said. Naqvi said India was the “main country” behind terrorism, saying that it was not only providing financial support to the terrorists but was also aiding them in planning and strategising.
For his part, Bugti expressed gratitude to Naqvi for rushing to Quetta.
“We chaired a high-level security meeting and visited the injured at the Combined Military Hospital,” the CM said.
“In terms of the incident itself, information has yet to come but I want to say that the operation is pretty much over,” he said. Bugti also condemned the killing of women and children belonging to a Baloch family hailing from Khuzdar in Gwadar’s labour colony.
He lauded law enforcement and security personnel for their response to the attacks.
“The terrorists’ morale was declining. To raise morale, they executed this attack but the lethality was very low,” the CM said.
“The rebuttal by security forces was superb,” he said. Bugti added that the state’s resolve “could not be weakened”.
ISPR says 92 terrorists killed
The military’s media affairs wing said that terrorists belonging to Indian-sponsored Fitna al Hindustan “attempted to disturb peace of Balochistan” by conducting multiple terrorist activities around Quetta, Mastung, Nushki, Dalbandin, Kharan, Panjgur, Tump, Gwadar and Pasni.
The state has designated Balochistan-based terrorist groups as Fitna-al-Hindustan to highlight India’s alleged role in terrorism and destabilisation across Pakistan.
In a statement, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that at the “behest of their foreign masters, these cowardly acts of terrorism were aimed at disrupting the lives of the local populace and the development of Balochistan”.
It said terrorists targeted civilians in Gwadar and Kharan, including women, children, the elderly and labourers, resulting in the deaths of 18 people.
“Security forces and law enforcement agencies, being fully alert, immediately responded and successfully thwarted the evil design of terrorists, displaying unwavering courage and professional excellence,” the statement said.
It said that troops, after an “intense and daring clearance operation”, killed 92 terrorists, including three suicide bombers. The statement said that during this process, 15 personnel embraced martyrdom.
“Sanitisation operations in these areas are being continuously conducted and the instigators, perpetrators, facilitators and abettors of these heinous and cowardly acts, targeting innocent civilians and law enforcement agencies’ personnel, will be brought to justice,” it said.
“Intelligence reports have unequivocally confirmed that the attacks were orchestrated and directed by terrorist ring leaders operating from outside Pakistan, who were in direct communication with the terrorists throughout the incident,” ISPR said.
Noting that 41 terrorists were killed in Panjgur and Harnai on Jan 30, ISPR said the total number of killed militant in “ongoing operations” in Balochistan had reached 133.
‘Desperate move’
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar had earlier described the attacks as “a desperate move” by the terrorists while security forces were about to neutralise them.
“This was a desperate move by the terrorists. Our security forces are close to defeating the fighters of Fitna-al-Hindustan and Fitna-al-Khawarij,” he said in an interview with Geo News.
He said the security forces were alert at all locations and were not taken by surprise. “Our security forces, personnel and officers have fought bravely. They were alert at all sites and fully prepared,” he said.
Expressing deep sorrow, he said that terrorists of the banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) had killed family members of Baloch labourers hailing from Khuzdar and Gwadar.
He reiterated that the attack was thwarted with full force. Tarar further said that the prime minister was aware of the situation and was in contact.
“The prime minister condemned the attack and reaffirmed that we will not rest until the last terrorist is eliminated from the country,” he said.
“It is the resolve of the state of Pakistan that it will not rest until terrorism is eliminated from the country,” he added.
He continued, “We are fully focused. The terrorists failed due to the unity of the Pakistani nation, and the entire nation stands behind the security forces.”
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that the recent terrorist attacks were “terrorism being run under foreign patronage, whose targets are both Pakistan and the people of Balochistan” and not a struggle for rights.
“These elements neither tolerate development nor peace. That is why they target labourers, travellers, and ordinary citizens, want to destroy development projects and employment opportunities, and conspire against projects like the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor,” he stated in a post on X.
The defence minister added that terrorist groups recruited young people through social media, while receiving funding through “organised criminal networks, a drug-fuelled economy, extortion, and smuggling”.
“The state is resolute. The morale of our law enforcement agencies is high, and we will bring the terrorists, their facilitators, and the foreign handlers to their logical end,” Asif vowed.
Bugti visits Quetta attack site
CM Bugti also visited the site of a bomb blast in Quetta to review the security situation, a statement from the CM House said. Balochistan Inspector General (IG) Muhammad Tahir provided a detailed briefing on the incident to the chief minister, who also met security and police personnel.
“The timely response against terrorist elements is commendable,” Bugti was quoted as saying, hailing the effective actions taken by the police and the CTD.
“Anti-state elements will not be forgiven under any circumstances. There will be no compromise on peace in Balochistan,” the chief minister asserted.
Later, Interior Minister Naqvi also arrived in Quetta to engage in high-level discussions on the law and order situation, while CM Bugti vowed that sacrifices by martyrs “would not go in vain”, according to an official statement.
It said that the minister and CM Bugti visited Police Lines to offer funeral prayers for the martyrs and meet their families.
“The people and security forces of Balochistan are brave and courageous,” Naqvi was quoted as saying. “Our soldiers took comprehensive and effective action against terrorists. The sacrifices of martyrs cannot be forgotten, and the nation salutes them.”
CM Bugti was quoted as saying, “The sacrifices of our martyrs will not go in vain. The state has always stood with the oppressed and will continue to do so.”
Earlier in the day, provincial government official Shahid Rind said police and the FC had foiled attempted terrorist attacks at a “few places across Balochistan”.
Rind, the special aide to CM for political and media affairs, noted on X that the attacks came after over 70 terrorists had been killed over the past two days by security forces at different locations across the province.
Naqvi also visited the Corps Headquarters in Quetta. According to Radio Pakistan, Naqvi was briefed about the security situation in Balochistan and the terrorist attacks of Fitna al Hindustan.
CM Bugti was also present for the briefing. The interior minister appreciated the timely and effective action of the security forces, the report said.
He also paid tribute to the personnel and citizens who were martyred in the terrorist attacks. Naqvi said the ongoing war against terrorism would continue till the last terrorist was eliminated, the report said.
Emergency imposed in hospitals
An emergency was imposed in all government hospitals across the province on the directives of Health Minister Bakht Muhammad Kakar and Health Secretary Mujeebur Rehman.
Kakar was supervising the provision of medical treatment to those “injured in the Quetta firing”, a statement from the provincial health department said.
The health minister directed Quetta Trauma Centre Managing Director Dr Arbab Kamran and Quetta Civil Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Abdul Hadi Kakar to ensure the “immediate” provision of medical facilities.
According to the statement, the operating theatres of the Quetta Trauma Centre and Civil Hospital have been put on alert, and additional doctors have been deployed.
‘IED, explosives neutralised in Nasirabad’
Separately, police said suspected explosive materials were found on a railway track in Balochistan’s Nasirabad district.
“An anti-tank mine and explosive material were found on the railway line near Rabi Pul,” said a statement by Nasirabad Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Asadullah Nasir.
“A suspected IED (improvised explosive device) was neutralised as the police, FC and Special Branch took timely action,” it added.
The recovered items included half a kilogramme of explosive material, petrol and an iron rod, according to SSP Nasir. The items were handed over to the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) for further investigation.
Railway tracks are a frequent target of terrorists, with the Jaffar Express coming under attack several times over the past year.
Most recently, on Monday night, a blast on the railway track linking Sindh to Balochistan derailed four bogies of the Quetta-bound Jaffar Express train coming from Peshawar and damaged the track.
The Jaffar Express had also escaped attacks in Nasirabad in October and November last year. Similar attempts also occurred during the two months in Kachhi and Sindh’s Shikarpur district.
Resolve to fight terror till its ‘complete eradication’
President Asif Ali Zardari commended the army and law enforcement agencies’ (LEAs) professional expertise for foiling “infiltration attempts by Fitna-al-Hindustan terrorists at multiple locations”.
In a statement, he also paid tribute to the “security personnel and innocent civilians who embraced martyrdom during the actions”, and prayed for their high ranks.
“Our commitment is not to make any compromise on Balochistan’s peace, civilians’ protection, and national unity,” Zardari affirmed.
He asserted that the state will continue its operations against “enemy elements operating under external backing and their facilitators with full force and unity”.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif praised the security forces for foiling malicious attempts by Fitna-al-Hindustan to disrupt peace in Balochistan, state-run APP reported.
The premier professional competence and bravery of the security forces for thwarting “coordinated attacks at 12 locations across Quetta, Noshki, Dalbandin, Pasni and Gwadar”.
He noted that 37 terrorists were neutralised during the operations, dealing a “major blow” to militant networks operating in the region.
PM Shehbaz also lauded the personnel for “neutralising 88 leading terrorists, backed by India, in various intelligence-based operations carried out over the past 48 hours, terming it a significant success in the ongoing fight against terrorism”.
He paid homage to the 10 valiant security personnel who embraced martyrdom during the operations, sacrificing their lives while giving precedence to protecting the homeland over their own safety.
“The entire nation, including myself, is proud of its martyrs,” the prime minister said, adding that the officers and personnel of the security forces were performing their duties with exemplary courage and selflessness.
Reaffirming the government’s resolve, PM Shehbaz stated that the war against terrorism would continue until its complete eradication from the country.
Balochistan Planning Minister Mir Zahoor Ahmed Buledi strongly condemned the “damage to public properties and terrorising citizens by a handful of terrorists”.
“Balochistan will not be held hostage by these perpetrators of violence. With public support, LEAs have foiled terrorist designs,” he said on X.
Buledi further said that Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti “cut short his Islamabad engagements, including a meeting with the World Bank President & returned to Quetta immediately to resume official work at the CM House”.
The British High Commission also condemned the attacks.
“Our thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives and all those affected. We stand with Pakistan in rejecting terrorism and in our shared commitment to peace and security,” it said.
Turkiye’s foreign ministry condemned the spate of “heinous terrorist attacks” in Balochistan, praying for those who lost their lives and for a swift recovery for the injured.
“We will continue to stand by brotherly Pakistan in its fight against all forms of terrorism,” it said in a post on X.
Similarly, Qatar’s foreign ministry issued a statement condemning the attack and reiterating Doha’s firm rejection of “violence, terrorism and criminal acts in all forms, regardless of their motives or justifications“.
“The ministry also expresses the state of Qatar’s sincere condolences to the families of the victims, as well as to the government and people of Pakistan, and extends its wishes for a speedy recovery to the injured,” the statement read.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs denounced the terrorist attacks and reiterated Riyadh’s “complete rejection of all acts of terrorism and extremism” and its solidarity with Pakistan and its efforts to maintain territorial integrity.
“The kingdom expresses its sincere condolences to the families of the deceased and to the government and people of Pakistan, and wishes the injured a speedy recovery,” the ministry said in a statement.
Rise in terrorism
The proscribed BLA has carried out frequent attacks in Balochistan, specifically targeting security forces and LEAs.
In August 2025, the United States also designated the BLA and its Majeed Brigade squad as foreign terrorist organisations.
Earlier this week, CTD said six proclaimed offenders affiliated with the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were killed during an operation in Pishin.
On January 5, an IED attack in Panjgur killed one person and injured 16 others.
Despite record militant deaths, Pakistan saw a sharp escalation in militant violence in 2025, with terrorist attacks rising by 34 per cent and terrorism-related fatalities increasing by 21pc year-on-year, according to data released by the Islamabad-based Pak Institute for Peace Studies.
As many as 699 terrorist attacks were recorded countrywide during the year.
In early December, security forces carried out a two-day operation against militants who attacked the brigade headquarters of Frontier Corps in Chagai district’s Nokundi area.
The same day the FC headquarters was targeted as a suicide bomber detonated himself at its main gate, armed terrorists also launched an attack on an FC checkpost in Panjgur district’s Gurmakan area.
On November 24, three personnel were martyred and 12 sustained injuries in a suicide attack on the FC headquarters in Peshawar.
