Residents block the main highway in Surab to protest a reported Pakistani military bombardment that damaged a mosque and homes in Naghar. [TBP]
A mosque and several homes were damaged in a reported Pakistani military bombardment in Naghar, Surab, while lawyers across Makran Division boycotted courts over a separate drone strike in Balicha, Kech, that killed four local youths.
Local residents said the bombardment struck Naghar overnight, damaging a number of houses as well as a mosque. No deaths or injuries have been reported so far.
Residents later blocked the main highway in protest against the incident.
Local sources said Pakistani forces used force to disperse the demonstrators.
Separately, lawyers in Turbat, Gwadar, Panjgur and Pasni stayed away from courts on Thursday at the call of the Makran High Court Bar Association over the September 24 drone strike in Balicha.
Lawyers said the boycott affected proceedings in several cases, while litigants who had arrived for hearings faced difficulties.
The Makran High Court Bar Association and other lawyers’ bodies condemned what they described as the “Balicha tragedy,” saying four local youths had gone to the mountainous Lotham area for a picnic when they were targeted.
They called for a “full, transparent and impartial investigation,” the identification and prosecution of those responsible, and justice for the affected families.
Family sources said six residents of Balicha had travelled to Lotham, where four were preparing food while the other two had gone hunting when the strike took place. Four were killed, including three cousins, and two were injured.
Yasir, Zubair, Sameer and Deedag, who were killed in a reported Pakistani military drone strike in Balicha, Kech, on September 24. [TBP]
Pakistani authorities later described those killed as suspected militants and said weapons and ammunition had been recovered. Families and local residents rejected the account, saying the men were civilians who had gone to the area for a picnic.
The latest developments come amid repeated reports of aerial attacks and bombardment in Balochistan in recent months, including in Surab itself.
In August, residents of Gidar Goandhan in Surab said Pakistani military aircraft struck civilian homes, killing and injuring women and children. Families later staged a sit-in on the Quetta-Karachi highway, while the Pakistani military disputed the local account and said militants preparing explosives had been killed in a premature blast.
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