The roots of the insurgency in Balochistan go back to shortly after creation of Pakistan in 1947, when Baloch leaders resisted the region’s incorporation into the new country. Since then, Balochistan has witnessed several cycles of rebellion — in the late 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and again from the early 2000s.
The latest coordinated attacks by Baloch rebels across Balochistan have once again drawn attention to one of Pakistan’s longest-running and most complex internal conflicts. The assaults, carried out over Friday night and into Saturday, marked a significant escalation in the decades-old insurgency in the resource-rich but impoverished province.
According to Pakistani officials, the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) launched simultaneous attacks in at least 12 cities and districts, including Quetta, Nushki, Gwadar, Makran, Hub, Chaman and Naseerabad. The Baloch rebels targeted security forces, police installations and infrastructure, prompting large-scale counter-operations by Pakistan’s army and law enforcement agencies. Official figures say at least 70 militants and 10 security personnel were killed in what has been described as the deadliest single-day assault in decades. Authorities later claimed that most of the attacks were foiled and that the situation is now under control.
According to the BLA and other Baloch separatist groups, their actions are part of a broader struggle against what they describe as exploitation and political marginalization by the central government of Pakistan. Balochistan, which is Pakistan’s largest province by area, is rich in natural resources such as gas, coal, copper and gold, yet remains Pakistan’s least developed region. According to separatists’ arguments, Balochistan’s wealth benefits Islamabad and the military establishment rather than local communities.
The roots of the insurgency in Balochistan go back to shortly after the creation of Pakistan in 1947, when Baloch leaders resisted the region’s incorporation into the new country. Since then, Balochistan has witnessed several cycles of rebellion — in the late 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and again from the early 2000s. Each phase has been driven by grievances over autonomy, control of resources, political representation and alleged human rights abuses, including enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, claims the Pakistani state denies.
In recent years, attacks have intensified around strategic projects linked to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), particularly in Gwadar. Rebel groups view these projects as symbols of further dispossession, arguing that they bring little benefit to ordinary Baloch people while increasing military presence in the province.
Pakistan’s government and military blame foreign actors behind the insurgency, insisting that the majority of Baloch citizens reject separatism. Rebel groups, however, deny Pakistan’ stand and claim popular support and portray their campaign as a resistance movement.
The violence of Friday and Saturday underscores the unresolved nature of the Baloch conflict and highlights the deep mistrust between the state and sections of the province’s population — an impasse that continues to fuel instability in the region.
