Armed fighters reportedly set up blockades, seized commercial vehicles and disrupted traffic on major highways in Kalat, Mastung, Kharan, Chagai and Washuk on Thursday, while Pakistani forces were targeted in an ambush in Kalat.
According to local sources, armed fighters established a blockade at Dasht Baba in Kalat and seized a company container along with its cargo. The container was later moved to an undisclosed location.
Pakistani forces advancing into the area in armoured vehicles were subsequently ambushed, the sources said. No information regarding casualties or material losses was immediately available.
The attack came a day after Pakistani forces personnel travelling on foot near Makai in the Manguchar area of Kalat were targeted with an improvised explosive device as they advanced towards their posts.
Sources said six Pakistani forces personnel were killed in the explosion. One of them was identified as Imdadullah, a resident of Wanda Chakri in Lakki Marwat.
Separately, a tribal elder, Sardar Shah Zaman Khan Alizai, and his son reportedly went missing during a blockade established by armed fighters at Surgaz on the Quetta-Karachi highway in Mastung district.
Sources said the two were travelling from Mastung to Quetta when fighters checking vehicles at the blockade took them away along with their Vigo vehicle.
Official confirmation of the incident was still awaited, and neither police nor the district administration had issued a formal statement at the time of publication.
Meanwhile, armed fighters used heavy machinery to destroy a bridge on the Kharan-Karachi highway in the Sotkagan area of Kharan.
A large section of the bridge was destroyed, resulting in the suspension of traffic along the highway, according to local reports.
Reports from Chagai said armed fighters attacked trucks carrying commercial goods from the Taftan border to other cities in Pakistan and set two of the vehicles on fire.
Armed fighters also established a blockade in Washuk and seized two commercial vehicles after stopping them, according to sources from the area.
The incidents come amid repeated attacks on vehicles transporting oil and gas from Iran and minerals, including coal, from Balochistan, as well as Pakistani forces deployed to protect such transport.
The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) earlier announced what it described as an “economic blockade” after claiming control over sections of highways several months ago. Since then, dozens of attacks have been reported along routes used for the transport of oil and gas from Iran, coal and other minerals from Balochistan, and commercial goods.
However, no group had claimed responsibility for the latest incidents at the time of publication.