Balochistan is often described in distant capitals as a land of “grievances” and “ethnic unrest.” But a closer look at the province’s reality reveals a far harsher truth: the primary threat to Baloch citizens is not their government, but armed groups that exploit chaos for profit, influence, and geopolitical agendas. These actors are not defenders of culture or local rights they are spoilers of development, orchestrators of terror, and beneficiaries of instability. Militancy as a Business Model Armed insurgents in Balochistan have turned violence into an organized enterprise. Gas pipelines are targeted not merely to disrupt energy supply, but because…
Author: Web Desk2
When the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 2816 in 2026, extending sanctions monitoring related to Afghanistan, it did more than renew a bureaucratic mandate. It reaffirmed a reality that Pakistan has consistently highlighted: militant ecosystems do not disappear through rhetoric. They survive in permissive spaces, reorganize quietly, and project instability across borders. For Pakistan, this is not theory. It is lived experience. A Recognized Militant Ecosystem Monitoring assessments presented to the UN have indicated that Afghanistan continues to host multiple international terrorist entities alongside thousands of foreign fighters. The concern is not simply about isolated cells. It is…
There is a rare moment unfolding in the region. A moment that offers Afghanistan something it has been denied for decades: economic integration instead of isolation, trade corridors instead of war corridors, rail tracks instead of militant tracks. The discussions around the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan Railway Project, the Termiz–Kharlachi route, and broader Trans-Afghan connectivity initiatives are not just technical agreements. They are lifelines. The question is simple. Will Kabul understand what is at stake? The Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan corridor is not an ordinary infrastructure project. It is a strategic bridge linking Central Asia to the Arabian Sea. It promises landlocked states access to global…
The geography of militancy has changed, but its direction remains the same. Violence is no longer confined within Afghan borders. It travels. It adapts. It infiltrates. From the mountains of Badakhshan to the troubled districts bordering Balochistan, a structured network of terror has emerged that operates beyond ideology and thrives on organized destabilization. The drone strikes targeting Chinese workers in Tajikistan were not isolated flashes of chaos. They signaled something more calculated. A quadcopter dropping grenades across an international border reflects tactical evolution. It shows that these militant outfits are not scattered remnants hiding in caves. They are connected, equipped,…
If the Baloch Liberation Army genuinely fought for the rights and dignity of the Baloch people, its violence would have reflected that claim. Operation Herof 2.0 proved the opposite. The guns were not pointed at symbols of oppression alone, they were turned inward, toward Baloch streets, Baloch homes, and Baloch livelihoods. Markets were forced shut, highways blocked, banks looted, and civilian neighborhoods turned into battle zones. These were not abstract targets of a distant state. These were the daily spaces where ordinary Baloch families earn, travel, study, and survive. Every act of disruption translated into fear, loss of income, and…
If one were to seek a single day that captures the immense, contradictory and resilient soul of modern Pakistan, today would be a perfect candidate. The script of this day was written not with one narrative, but three, each unfolding with urgent simultaneity. in the land of Punjab, the earth itself seemed to rejoice in the long-awaited “Basant” festivities, where the air was thick with kites and the ecstatic drumbeats of cultural reawakening. During the daytime, in a mosque in Islamabad, the sanctity of Juma prayer was shattered by the bang of violence, leaving the nation shocked and in pain.…
In the evolving landscape of terrorism in Balochistan, one disturbing trend has emerged: the deliberate deployment of women in suicide attacks and armed engagements. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), under the guise of “resistance” or “political struggle,” has crossed a line where ideology no longer masks reality—what we are witnessing is terrorism in its purest and most cynical form. Recent attacks, such as those carried out by Shari Baloch in 2022 and Sumaiya Qalandrani Baloch in 2023, are not anomalies. They are part of a calculated pattern where young, educated women are deliberately groomed, manipulated, and turned into instruments of…
The Balochistan Liberation Army no longer fights to win territory, command popular support, or shape political outcomes. Those battles were lost years ago. What remains is a shrinking, desperate struggle over narrative space. Operation Herof II is not a military campaign. It is an attempt to stay visible in an environment where operational failure has become routine and public legitimacy nonexistent. Militant groups survive on perception long after they lose the ability to influence reality. The BLA today operates entirely inside that logic. Its attacks are timed, branded, filmed, and announced not for strategic gain but for digital consumption. The…
Strip away the slogans, and the reality in Balochistan becomes impossible to deny. One hundred and eight terrorists neutralized in coordinated counterterrorism operations. Eleven unarmed Baloch civilians, among them women and children, executed in Gwadar. Ten Pakistani security personnel killed while defending civilians. These are not competing narratives. They are cause and consequence. For years, sections of the international commentariat have framed violence in Balochistan as a “low-intensity insurgency” or a “separatist struggle.” That framing collapses the moment labourers are lined up and murdered. The Gwadar attack was not resistance. It was terrorism in its purest form. The victims were…
Balochistan has long been depicted by the world as a province of despair, violence, and underdevelopment. Yet beneath this narrative lies the stark reality of Pakistan’s transformative vision, particularly under the framework of CPEC 2.0. Gwadar, once a quiet port town, has now become the epicenter of Pakistan’s maritime and industrial ambitions, symbolizing progress, connectivity, and opportunity. While Pakistan builds for the future, Balochistan’s insurgents continue to cling to the past violence, fear, and stagnation. CPEC 2.0 has brought an unprecedented wave of infrastructure, industrialization, and employment opportunities to Pakistan. In Balochistan, Gwadar Port is emerging as a smart transshipment…