The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of Pakistan’s military, has claimed that three Baloch fighters were killed by security forces in Balochistan’s Mastung district during an “operation” in the early hours of August 19.
According to ISPR, the “intelligence-based operation” resulted in an intense exchange of fire, during which three members of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) were killed and three others were injured.
The ISPR further alleged that the individuals killed were involved in several activities in the region, including the assassination of Panjgur Deputy Commissioner Zakir Ali on August 12.
However, no independent sources have confirmed the reported clash in Mastung.
The Baloch Liberation Army had previously denied involvement in the killing of Deputy Commissioner Zakir Ali. BLA spokesperson Jeeyand Baloch stated that Zakir Ali was not on the group’s target list and accused the Pakistani military and the Balochistan government of attempting to implicate the BLA as part of a “propaganda campaign.”
It is noteworthy that Pakistani officials have made similar claims in the past about killing Baloch “pro-independence” fighters during operations in Balochistan. Subsequent investigations have sometimes revealed that those killed were Baloch missing persons who had reportedly been “abducted” by Pakistani forces from various areas of Balochistan.
Baloch human rights activists and nationalists argue that Pakistani forces are killing Baloch missing persons and later portraying them as “pro-independence” fighters. They assert that the victims are often civilians who were picked up during raids and military operations.