The Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF) said its fighters briefly took control of Kharan city, seized weapons from police and CTD stations, and killed 35 Pakistani military personnel and alleged agents in separate operations across Balochistan.
In two statements on Monday, BLF spokesperson Major Gwahram Baloch said the group carried out attacks in Kharan, Tump, Surab, Khuzdar, Turbat, Hirronk and Pedrak.
The BLF said its fighters entered Kharan city on August 1, blockaded key locations and surrounded the City Police Station and the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) station in the city centre.
The spokesperson said police personnel were taken into custody, eight Kalashnikovs and other equipment were seized, and records at the CTD station were set on fire.
The detained police personnel were later warned and released, the statement said, claiming that no evidence was found of their direct involvement in what the group described as the “Baloch genocide”.
For two hours, the BLF claimed, Kharan city remained under its fighters’ “complete control”, while Pakistani forces stayed confined to their camps and barracks and could not advance.
“After successfully achieving all the designated objectives of the operation, all fighters withdrew safely to their secure zones according to the plan,” the statement said.
The BLF alleged that after its fighters withdrew, Pakistani forces opened indiscriminate fire, fired mortar shells and used quadcopters to target civilian homes in an attempt to conceal what it called their failure.
The statement said a shell dropped by a quadcopter on the house of Mehboob Ali Malangzai injured six people, including four women and a child.
It denied responsibility for the civilian injuries and accused Pakistani forces of trying to blame the incident on BLF fighters.
In another operation on July 31, the BLF said its fighters attacked a Pakistani military checkpoint in the Kalat area of Tump with grenade launchers, firing multiple rounds that it said hit their targets.
When Pakistani forces attempted to pursue the fighters after the attack, the statement said, BLF fighters already positioned in ambush between Dazin and Gomazi targeted them and forced them to retreat, causing further personnel and material losses.
The BLF also claimed that its fighters carried out an operation on the CPEC road in the Gowash area of Kharan on July 30, setting fire to and destroying two vehicles belonging to what it called an “exploitative company”.
On the same day, the group said, its fighters attacked another Pakistani military checkpoint in the Malant area of Tump with grenade launchers, causing casualties and material losses.
In a second statement, Major Gwahram Baloch said 35 Pakistani military personnel and alleged agents, including SSG commandos and members of an alleged “death squad”, were killed in eight operations in Surab, Khuzdar, Turbat, Hirronk and Pedrak.
The BLF said its fighters attacked a Pakistani military convoy with heavy and automatic weapons at Surab Bypass on August 3, killing seven personnel and wounding four others.
Later the same day, the statement said, another Pakistani military convoy was ambushed in the Gidar area of Surab, killing three personnel and wounding several others, while military vehicles were also damaged.
It said a five-vehicle military convoy was also targeted in Lakhoriyan, Khuzdar, on August 2, causing casualties and damaging two vehicles.
The BLF also claimed a hand-grenade attack on an FC checkpoint in Singani Sar, Turbat, and a grenade-launcher attack on an FC camp in Hirronk Bazaar on August 1.
The statement described the July 29 attack at Zidi Cross on the Quetta-Karachi highway in Khuzdar as a coordinated ambush, saying BLF fighters targeted a Pakistani military patrol convoy at close range with rocket launchers and other heavy weapons.
According to the BLF, 15 personnel, including SSG commandos, were killed and several others wounded in the attack, while several military vehicles, including an armoured vehicle, were severely damaged.
After completing the operation, the group said, its fighters withdrew towards their bases under a pre-planned strategy. It added that additional Pakistani troops and gunship helicopters later reached the area and attempted to pursue them, but the fighters reached their secure bases safely.
The BLF alleged that after the fighters withdrew, Pakistani forces carried out indiscriminate firing and shelling from helicopters, affecting civilians and drivers involved in the oil trade.
The group also claimed responsibility for an intelligence-based operation on July 28 against a checkpoint in Darmakol, Pedrak, which it described as a state-backed “death-squad” base run by Sardar Aziz.
According to the statement, the checkpoint was located about one kilometre from the Frontier Corps 54 Wing camp in Pedrak and had been established under the patronage of Pakistani forces and intelligence agencies.
The BLF alleged that the site had been used as a “torture cell and death-squad base” from where Baloch civilians, students and political activists were forcibly disappeared, handed over to military camps or killed.
The group said the operation targeted Shah Baig Aziz, son of Sardar Aziz, whom it described as a senior commander of the alleged group and accused of taking part in anti-Baloch operations under military patronage.
The statement claimed that seven alleged “death-squad” members were killed in the attack, including Shah Baig Aziz, Amanullah son of Sher Muhammad, and Altaf Hussain son of Murad, while the base and checkpoint were completely destroyed.
The BLF said its fighters reached their secure bases after completing the operation.
Pakistani authorities had not issued a detailed statement on the BLF claims at the time of publication.