Saturday (21 February) marks the final day of an ultimatum issued by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) over the fate of seven Pakistani military personnel held in its custody, as reports emerged of aerial operations by Pakistani forces in parts of Balochistan.
The BLA said it captured the soldiers on 31 January during the second phase of “Operation Herof,” after intercepting a Pakistani military convoy in the mountainous Ornach area of Khuzdar district.
Local sources said the convoy was travelling from Ornach to Khuzdar Cantonment when it was ambushed. One officer, identified as Captain Umar, was killed in the clashes, while a colonel-rank officer was injured after his armoured vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device.
In a statement issued on 14 February, the BLA said it had captured 17 security personnel during the attacks, adding that 10 detainees — whom it identified as Baloch or local residents — were later released. The group said seven personnel remained in custody.
The BLA said the remaining detainees, whom it described as members of “regular units” of the Pakistani army, were presented before what it called the “Baloch National Court,” where proceedings were held.
According to the group, the detainees were accused of war crimes and involvement in operations against civilians, enforced disappearances and what it described as the “genocide of the Baloch people.”
The group said its Command Council had granted Pakistan a seven-day period to indicate its willingness to engage in a prisoner exchange, adding that the seven soldiers could be swapped for what it described as Baloch prisoners of war if Islamabad took “formal and practical steps” within the deadline.
Pakistan has not issued any official response to the demand, nor has it confirmed or denied the convoy attack or the capture of the soldiers.
However, local sources said Pakistani forces launched aerial operations on Saturday in the mountainous areas of Khuzdar, Ornach and Lasbela, hours before the ultimatum was due to expire.
There was no official statement on the operations, and details on casualties or targets were not immediately available.
Historical Context of Failed Prisoner Exchanges
The BLA has previously proposed prisoner exchanges involving captured Pakistani military personnel, but says the detainees were later killed after what it described as a refusal by the Pakistani state to negotiate.
In July 2022, the group captured Lieutenant Colonel Laiq Baig Mirza near Ziarat and offered a prisoner exchange. After the Pakistani military launched an operation instead of negotiating, the BLA killed the officer.
The group captured JCO Kaleemullah and Military Intelligence official Muhammad Faisal in September 2022. Despite extended deadlines over three weeks, the military did not meet the BLA’s conditions, and both men were executed.
The group also claimed responsibility for the capture of two Frontier Corps officials in the Margat area of Bolan in October 2023. The BLA said it proposed a prisoner exchange but received no response.
The group captured ten individuals near Quetta in June 2024 and issued a one-week ultimatum for a prisoner exchange. Seven were later executed, while three others were found innocent and released, the BLA said.
In March 2025, the BLA hijacked the Jaffar Express train and claimed to have taken 214 military personnel hostage, identifying them as members of Pakistan’s army and intelligence agencies.
The group classified them as “prisoners of war” and issued a 48-hour ultimatum demanding the unconditional release of Baloch political prisoners and forcibly disappeared persons.
On 14 March, after the BLA said the Pakistani state refused to negotiate and launched operations instead, the group announced it had executed all 214 detainees, calling the outcome “tragic but inevitable.”