The Baloch Republican Guards (BRG) has denounced the United States’ decision to designate the Majeed Brigade, the special unit of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), saying the move reflects “the Pakistani state’s narrative” and ignores realities in Balochistan.
The US State Department on Monday added the BLA and its special unit, the Majeed Brigade, to its FTO list. The designation makes it a federal crime in the US to provide material support to the groups, blocks their assets under US jurisdiction, and imposes travel restrictions on members.
Pakistan welcomed the move on Tuesday.
In a statement on Friday, BRG spokesperson Dostain Baloch said a superpower such as the United States should assess the “ground realities” before making such decisions. He described the Majeed Brigade as “part of the wider movement for Balochistan’s independence, not merely a special unit of the BLA”.
Dostain Baloch said the Baloch nation viewed the Majeed Brigade as its “saviour” and its fighters as “heroes” resisting Pakistan’s “illegal and forcible occupation” since 1948.
He added that the Baloch have “full rights over their resources” but that Pakistan “exploits them and offers them to foreign powers while creating a false impression that everything is fine in Balochistan”.
He urged the US and the international community to “refrain from linking the Baloch independence movement to terrorism” and to support “the legitimate struggle against Pakistan’s occupation”.
The BRG spokesperson stressed that the Baloch were “not against any foreign country” but would “firmly resist anyone who joins Pakistan in looting their resources”. He said the US had “believed Pakistani propaganda” in designating the BLA as a terrorist organization, describing it instead as “a national movement engaged in a legitimate struggle for independence”.
Related: BLA Rejects US Terrorist Designation, Calls It ‘Colonial Narrative’ and Vows to Continue Resistance