Law and Order in Balochistan

 

1st Quarter 2006

  

Law and order in Balochistan Archives

Below are all the headlines from this page click on headline and go straight to it
 
Three gas pipelines blown up, 1 woman and 3 children in jet bombing

Three gas pipelines were blown up in the Pir Koh gas field area and Mastung township, while a bomb exploded in Quetta and around 28 rockets were fired at Frontier Corps checkposts in Kohlu and Dera Bugti districts, on Tuesday.

Quetta city was rocked at night by a powerful explosion in the Railway Colony. The device was planted near the house of a union council Nazim Javed. The portion of the house was damaged and windowpanes of nearby houses were smashed. However, no one was killed or injured.

Baloch fighters also blew up a pipeline supplying gas to Mastung in the early morning stopping the gas supply to the township.

Two other gas pipelines connecting gas plant with well No 3 and 16 from Pir Koh gas field were also blown up on Tuesday evening. Repair work could not be started as landmines had been planted there. The gas plant is closed for the last three weeks.

The District Nazim Dera Bugti Mohammad Kazim Bugti said that four gas wells were destroyed in Pir Koh gas field. He also claimed that a widow and her three children were killed in Khambi area of Dera Bugti during bombardment of jet air crafts.

According to reports Baloch freedom fighters fired at least 28 rockets at FC checkposts in different areas of Dera Bugti and Kohlu districts. 8.3.06
Rocket attack damages goods train

A railway employee was injured in a rocket attack on Saturday on a Zahedan-Quetta goods train near Nushki, some 170 kms from Quetta.

 According to railway authorities, rockets were fired upon the train from nearby mountains between Ahmedwal and Nushki. The rocket attack damaged the trian’s locomotive and injured the engine’s fireman.

“They fired three rockets that damaged the train’s locomotive, a brake van and rest of the vans,” an official of the Railway Control in Quetta said. Gunmen also fired upon the train with automatic weapons. He was identified as Mohammad Hussain and sent to railway hospital Quetta.

Railway officials said that the goods train remained stranded at the Nushki railway station. Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility of the attack. 5.3.06
FC check posts attacked

Over a dozen rockets were fired on check posts of Frontier Corps in different areas of Dera Bugti and Kohlu districts on Friday.

District Nazism of Dera Bugti claimed that four FC personnel were killed and half a dozen injured in a landmine blast in Ghori Nullah area and four members of a family were killed in firing in the Samny area of Dera Bugti.

According to sources, Baloch insurgents attacked with rockets and heavy fire FC posts in Kahan, Loti gas field, Pathar Nullah and Ghori Nullah areas. Exact number of casualties not known but it is belived that the armed forces sustained several deaths and injuries.

Official sources said that at least four landmines were detected by security forces in the Kamro-Wadh area of Kohlu district.

“The anti-tank mines were planted by Baloch insurgents to target vehicles of security forces,” sources said adding that the landmines were defused. 4.3.06
Six personnel and one civilian killed, Telecommunication station damaged in attacks

The building of a microwave station of the Pakistan Telecommunication Limited (PTCL) near Aab-i-Gum was attacked and damaged while rockets were fired on check posts of the Frontier Corps in Dera Bugti area on Tuesday.

Sources said that at least three security personnel were killed in landmine explosions in different areas.

According to reports reaching here, the microwave station in the Gokurt area of Bolan district was attacked in the morning. The insurgents scores of rounds with automatic weapons hitting different parts of the building. Levies personnel deployed in the area rushed to the place and returned fire. The exchange of fire continued for about an hour after which the attackers fled away.

A part of the building was damaged in the heavy firing, a senior official of the Balochistan Levies Force said, adding that the equipment in the station were safe and no casualty was reported.

“We have deployed more levies in the area to protect all installations and the railway line,” he said.

In the district of Dera Bugti, Baloch insurgents fired two rockets on a check post in Ghori Nullah and three rockets landed and exploded in Chashma, close to Sangsilla area.

Official sources confirmed the attack and said that one rocket was also fired on Ahmadan Qila in Dera Bugti being used by security forces. However, no casualty or damage was reported.

They said that forces had defused three powerful landmines in Pathar Nullah area of the Pir Koh gas field and Moranj area of Dera Bugti district.

Dera Bugti District Nazim Kazim Bugti told that at least three FC men were killed and two injured in landmine blasts in Pir Koh and Moranj. He said that a civilian belonging to Masoori Bugti tribe was also killed in a landmine blast.

He strongly criticized the DCO Dera Bugti and said that the situation in the district had deteriorated because of what he called his false statements on different TV channels. He accused security forces of partly occupying his official residence in Dera Bugti and establishing checkposts and a picket in the building. In this situation, he said, he had no option but to leave the township.

“I was not able to perform my official duties in this situation in Dera Bugti,” Kazim Bugti said, adding that the DCO himself had to move to Sui under heavy security. He said that all allegations levelled against him (the nazim) were wrong and baseless. He demanded transfer of the DCO and departmental action against him because, in his words, he violated discipline and levelled baseless allegation against him. 1.3.06
Gas pipeline, train tracks blown up

A pipeline supplying gas to parts of Sariab area was blown up in Quetta on Sunday night while Quetta’s rail link with the rest of the country was cut off when two tracks were blown up and two bogies and an engine of a passenger train derailed near Sibi following an explosion.

Following a blast which damaged the pipeline, gas supply to several areas was suspended. Police sources said that a two-foot portion of the pipeline had been blown up.

A spokesman for the Sui Southern Gas Company said the explosion caused serious damage to the six-inch diameter pipeline.

SSGC emergency crew shut off the nearest valve assembly to stop the flow of gas and avoid any further damage. A team was dispatched to the site to repair the line.

Meanwhile, an explosion on the main railway line near Sibi on Monday derailed two bogies and an engine of a passenger train near Sibi following the explosion.

All passenger trains from Quetta for Punjab, Sindh and the NWFP were halted at different railway stations after the derailment of the engine and two bogies of the Lahore-bound Chiltan Express. Two trains, Karachi-bound Sindh Express and Jaffar Express, did not leave till late evening.

According to railway authorities, the Chiltan Express escaped a powerful blast on main railway line linking Quetta with the rest of the country when it was crossing Paneri and Osaypur areas. The bogies and engine derailed when driver applied emergency brakes after the blast had blown up a large portion of the track. Passengers and railway staff were not hurt because the derailed bogies did not overturn.

Sources said that armed men on nearby hilltops started firing at the train when it reached the area. The driver reduced the speed of the train, but soon the explosion hit the line when the train was some 600 yards away. The derailment occurred when the driver applied emergency brakes.

After the incident, relief trains from Quetta and Sibi were sent to the area for repairing of track.

Meanwhile, a soldier of the Frontier Constabulary was killed and two others were injured when armed men attacked the force and railway staff in Tandori area in the Sibi-Harnai section. They had gone to repair a railway track that had been damaged in a blast early in the morning.

Mr. Azad Baloch of BLA (Baloch Liberation Army) claimed responsibility for the attacks. 28.2.06
Rockets fired on minister’s house: Man killed; 20 suspects held

Twenty people were taken into custody on Sunday in connection with a rocket attack on the residence of a provincial minister on Saturday night that killed one person and injured eight others.

Police said three rockets had been fixed on the official residence of Livestock Minister Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo in the Railway Housing Society. One rocket hit the guesthouse in the building, killing a guard and injuring eight others.

Another rocket landed in the house but it did not explode.

Mr Bizenjo himself was in Islamabad attending a course at the National Defence College along with another minister Asghar Rind.

Senior officials of police and administration reached the place soon after the attack and shifted the victims to civil hospital. Heavy contingents of security agencies cordoned off the area.

Investigation has started and so far 20 suspects have been taken into custody during raids in different areas. “They are suspects and police are interrogating them to trace the attackers,” SSP Dogar told Dawn.

He said all possible causes of the attack were being looked into, including the minister’s family enmity with other tribes in their native area.

Meanwhile, a caller identifying himself as Azad Baloch and spokesmen for the Baloch Liberation Army, told reporters that the BLA had carried out the attack.

Last year, the private residence of Chief Minister Jam Mir Mohammad Yousuf in Kalat was attacked with six rockets. Jam Yousuf was not home at that time. 27.2.06
Main gas supply pipeline to Punjab, NWFP blown up

Gas supply to power and fertilizer plants in Punjab and the NWFP was suspended following a blast in main pipelines in the Shahwali area of Rajanpur on Sunday night.

As the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limiter was assessing the magnitude of the damage at 11:30pm, an hour after the blast, it warned of gas suspension to the general industry in the two provinces if two of the three pipelines had been ruptured.

“The extent of the blaze is not permitting us to assess the damage and its cause,” said a company spokesman in Lahore. He said supply to the pipelines had been stopped from the nearest ‘valve-assembly’ to control the blaze.

Three lines of 18, 24 and 30 inches diameters carry gas from Sui to the SNGPL which feeds Punjab and the Frontier province. There are more than 100 large and small power units in the SNGPL jurisdiction which now face shutdown.

Shahwali, where the blast took place, is not far away from Sindh and Balochistan borders. The area has been under heavy Rangers’ patrol for over a year whose assignment is to guard the pipelines round the clock.

Reports from the area said flames were so fierce that it could be seen from tens of miles during the night.

A company spokesman told that it was a sabotage act because gas pressure was normal prior to the blast. The blast caused damage to the 30-inch gas pipeline. BLA claimed responsibility for the attack. 27.2.06
Rockets hit on Minister’s house, one killed eight injured

Rockets were fired Sunday at the home of a Cabinet minister of Balochistan province, killing a body guard and wounding eight others, police said. Two rockets struck the home of Abdul Qudus Bezinjo, minister for livestock and dairy, after midnight in a western neighborhood in Quetta, Balochistan capital, said Ghulam Mohamood Dogar, a senior Quetta police officer.

The minister was not at home at the time of the attack. It is worth mentioning that Mr Qudus is a pro-Musharraf and working against Baloch interests. It is believed this can be a message from the attackers to avoid such activities. Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility of the attack. 26.2.06
Clashes in Kahan, Dera Bugti, Mach and other areas, several soldiers kill

Two FC personnel killed in clashes between FC and Baloch separatists and a six-year-old girl was injured when a rocket hit a house in Sangsilla area of Dera Bugti district on Saturday.

According to reports, Baloch separatists and security forces exchanged fire in different areas of Dera Bugti and Kohlu.

Reports said Baloch insurgents attacked a check post of FC in Sangsilla in retaliation FC indiscriminately fire mortar shells in all directions, one of the mortar shell hit the roof of a house in a nearby village, injuring a young girl, Salima.

in another attack, insurgents fired rocket at a check post in Margat coalmine area near Mach 60 Km from Quetta. However, no casualty was reported.

Meanwhile, district Nazim Dera Bugti Mohammad Kazim Bugti has said that security forces suffered human loss on Saturday when Baloch fighters attacked the army in Loti and Pir Koh gas field area. He said that at least two FC men were killed.

Mr Kazim told that despite migration of around 80 per cent people the security forces were continuously shelling different areas of the township.

“They are targeting residence and guest house of Nawab Bugti to destroy them completely,” Kazim Bugti alleged and demanded of human rights organisations to take notice of this situation.

He said that people were struggling for their legitimate rights and self determination and government calling them terrorist and miscreants that was a great injustice with the Baloch people.

A spokesman of Anjuman Ittehad Marri added that fighting also continue in most parts of Marri area severe clashes were reported from Kahan, Nal, Jhabar, Krimo-Wadh and Talli between security forces and Baloch (Parrarie) Guerrilla. The army suffered several casualties but officials declined to comment. 26.2.06
Three FC personnel killed in Dera Bugti, Bomb blasts in Quetta

Three frontier Corps soldiers were killed and one was injured on Friday when Baloch freedom fighters attacked them in Dera Bugti’s Pathar Nala area, some 375 kilometres southeast of Quetta.

Sources said the FC men were defusing landmines installed in the Pathar Nala area when Baloch freedom fighters attacked them. An FC man stepped on a landmine that exploded, killing three personnel and injuring one critically. Paramilitary forces retaliated and the attackers escaped successfully.

Government officials claim that Baloch have spread a large number of landmines in the area situated near the gas plants. Dera Bugti District Coordination Officer Abdul Samad Lasi said that Loti and Pirkoh gas plants were closed after several attacks on gas pipelines and wells in the area.

Also, a gas pipeline exploded in Saryab area of Quetta and gas supply was suspended to nearby localities. No causality was reported. It was a third attack on a gas pipeline in Quetta since February 20.

An attempt was foiled when law enforcement agencies defused a bomb on February 20 but two bombs were later detonated. Gas Company General Manager Muhammad Nawaz said that repairs were underway and would be completed soon.

Online reported that at least three rockets were fired at an FC check-post in the Kahan area. The Pirkoh gas pipeline was damaged again by an explosion on Friday. 25.2.06
Baloch guerrillas destroying state infrastructure in Balochistan

A gas pipeline between Pir Koh and Dera Bugti was blown up on Thursday morning. The pipe line did not catch fire because there was no gas in the pipeline as supply through it has been temporarily suspended due to another recent attempt to blow it up.

When contacted, officials in Dera Bugti confirmed the incident and said that Baloch guerrillas had now resorted to destroying infrastructure of the gas installations and other government institutions in Dera Bugti and other areas of Balochistan. 24.2.06
Two soldiers killed, five wounded in latest Balochistan unrest

Baloch freedom fighters ambushed a military convoy in Balochistan on Wednesday, killing two soldiers and wounding four, officials said.

Insurgents positioned on mountains overlooking a road attacked the convoy with rockets and machine guns at Pinjra Pull, 70 kilometers southeast of Quetta, a security official said.

“The troops, who were on their way to nearby Sibi for a routine deployment, retaliated and the exchange of gunfire continued for about half an hour, he said.

At least two soldiers died and five others were wounded, the official said, adding that the casualties occurred after a military vehicle was ambushed by Insurgents.

The insurgents fled into the mountains after the ambush, he said. Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility of the attack.

Government forces launched military operations in the Kohlu and Dera Bugti districts of Balochistan in December after rockets were fired near President Musharraf when he visited the province.

Baloch separatists have targeted gas plants, electricity lines and railway tracks. A large number of civilians have died in the military operation. 23.2.06
Four solders injured in a landmine explosion & gas pipeline blown up

Four soldiers were injured when a landmine planted by Baloch rebels exploded beneath a military vehicle in Sibi on Wednesday, officials said.
According to sources a FC (Frontier corps) vehicle was in visit from Talli to Karmo wadh, when the vehicle hit in a landmine. Resulting four FC personnel were seriously injured. The injuries were shifted to Sibi Military hospital.

Baloch insurgents also blew up pipelines feeding natural gas from two wells to a filtration plant, the second such attack in two days in Balochistan’s Dera Bugti district, they said.

Baloch insurgents blew up the pipeline from Well No 23 of the Pirkoh Gas Field and stole valves from Wells 13 and 16 on Wednesday

Balochistan is the country’s main gas producing region and rebel attacks have disrupted supplies. In a separate incident, Baloch rebels blew up a Gas pipeline in eastern by pass in Quetta. 23.2.06
Landmine kills 3, gas line blown up in Balochistan

A land mine exploded killing three persons in the Lehri area, 200km off Quetta, while another gas pipeline exploded in Dera Bugti, suspending gas supply to the town.

Meanwhile, Dera Bugti DCO Abdul Samad Lasi said that a gas pipeline exploded in the eastern residential colony on Tuesday. The pipeline was one of the primary lines supplying gas to Dera Bugti. As a result, gas supply to the town had been disconnecting.

The pipe caught fire after the explosion, but it was brought under control. 22.2.06
 
Bomb blast in Balochistan district Mastung

A bomb blast on Tuesday night rocked the Mehrab Road area here in the district of Balochistan; however, no loss of life was reported.

Sources said that some Baloch freedom fighters had planted a powerful bomb at the boundary wall of one Government official’s house located on Merab Road area here, which later exploded with a big bang causing some damage to the gate of the house and shattering the glasses of the nearby buildings. However, there was no loss of life. 22.2.06
Gas pipelines and transmission towers blown up

Baloch insurgents blew up a pipeline in the Pir Koh gas field on Monday, while police in Quetta thwarted an attempt to destroy another pipeline supplying gas to Quetta city, officials said here.

Armed men planted a bomb under the pipeline supplying gas to the Pir Koh gas plant from well No 19 and detonated it on Monday morning.

The engineers had already closed the plant due to disruption of gas supply to the plant from at least 7 gas wells following attacks by Baloch insurgents. Sources said that repair work on the ruptured pipelines in Loti and Pir Koh could not be started due to the presence of landmines in the area.

Sources said that Baloch insurgents attacked a 132-KV transmission line with seven rockets in Kahan area of Kohlu district. A rocket hit a transmission tower and disrupted power supply to the area.

They said that Baloch insurgents also fired rockets in Sangsilla and Karmo Wadh areas at FC posts but no damage was reported. 21.2.06
Air strike destroys school, houses

Several houses and a school were destroyed on Monday when planes bombed two localities in Dera Bugti tehsil, Jamhoori Watan Party chief Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti said here.

“Children enrolled in the school escaped the bombing as they had left the school about an hour before the attack,” said Nawab Bugti, the chief of the Bugti tribe. He was speaking from an undisclosed location by satellite phone.

According to Nawab Bugti, two jets dropped four bombs on the Mirwar area of Sangsilla. “They made a school their target,” he alleged. He told newsmen that the bombing had left a 12-foot deep and 14-foot long crater in Mirwar.

He said that those who accused tribal chiefs of not allowing schools in their area were themselves destroying school buildings in the area.

The tribal chief said that fighter jets had also dropped at least six bombs on the Zain mountain range where tents of poor people were located. “The forces are targeting women and children and treating them like terrorists,” he said.

No fatality was reported in the bombing.

He said that heavy fighting was reported in Daman area of Sui tehsil where security forces attacked local people who also retaliated and returned fire. He said that armed tribesmen chased the FC personnel up to the Sui area. 21.2.06
Six more bombings rock Loti and Pirkoh

Six more bombings rocked Loti and Pirkoh gas plants on Sunday damaging more pipelines and gas wells.

Sources said that five remote controlled explosive devices at the Loti gas plant and one at the Pirkoh gas plant disrupted 90 million cubic feet of gas supply from the gas fields. Sui produces between 30 to 40 percent of the total gas produced in Pakistan. The two gas plants were closed recently when Baloch gorillas bombed the gas compression plant in Pirkoh.

The DCO said that the shortfall had been covered through alternate resources. “The supply of gas is now heavily dependent upon the Sui Northern Gas Company and Sui Southern Gas Company,” He said that "armed Balochs were attacking in groups now to combat the presence of military and paramilitary forces. The situation has been deteriorating for the past two months. Armed Balochs are present in the area and attack the installations whenever they can".

"We needs help of more soldiers, because Baloch insurgents have launched sophisticated guerrilla warfare and we can’t prevent the attack of them” he added.

A land mine explosion in Kohlu injured a Frontier Corp’s soldier. Sources said that a group of FC personnel were headed to Bair when one of them stepped on a land mine. Reportedly, insurgents also fired rockets at an FC camp in Lehri, Sibi. 20.2.06
Two gas plants closed and army personnel injured in attacks

Two major gas plants were shut down on Saturday after Baloch guerrillas blew up several pipelines and disrupted gas supply from wells.

“Baloch guerrillas blew up many pipelines and disrupted gas supply from wells, which cannot be repaired as a large number of landmines have been planted in the area,” officials in Pir Koh said.

They said that the guerrillas had blown up a part of gas well No 24 in Pir Koh gas field and another pipeline coming from well No 10 in Loti gas field. The latter well was targeted twice in the last 24 hours. Following the attacks gas supply to the two plants has been severely restricted.

“In the aftermath of the attack around 50 to 70 million cubic feet gas has wafted into the air,” a senior official of the Oil and Gas Development Corporation (OGDC) said. Against this background, he said, “we had no other option except to close down both the Loti and Pir Koh gas plants”.

Sources said Baloch guerrillas had stepped up attacks on pipelines in Pir Koh and Loti gas fields and planted different kinds of anti-personnel landmines in the area which were blocking efforts to launch repair work.

OGDC officials in Pir Koh said it would take at least 24 hours to repair the ruptured pipelines. The officials anticipate a shortage of around 80 to 90 million cubic feet of gas daily and say gas supply to Punjab and Sindh is likely to be affected.

BLA fighters detonated an explosive device when a convoy of the Frontier Corps reached within six kilometres of Kalat. Splinters from the device damaged a vehicle and three FC personnel seriously injured. 19.2.06
Gas pipeline, railway track blown up

The Pir Koh and Loti gas plants stopped functioning on Thursday following explosion in the main pipeline. In another incident, the main Quetta-Sibi railway track was blown up near Mach late on Thursday evening.

According to official sources, Baloch insurgents blew up the 16-inch diameter pipeline connecting six gas wells with the main compressor of the Pir Koh plant.

“The plant automatically shut down when gas supply dropped to zero level,” a senior official of the district administration said.

Railway authorities confirmed that a 20-foot piece of the track linking the city with the rest of the country had been blown up near Mach on Thursday.16.2.06
Rocket attack Kahan and Loti gas supply disrupted

Gas supply to Loti gas plant was suspended after another pipeline was damaged by rocket fire on Tuesday. Personnel of law-enforcement agencies are reported to have defused eight landmines planted on the Sui Road and in the Kahan area

Sources said that rockets fired in the Loti gas field area damaged the pipeline supplying gas to the purification plant from well No16. “The gas supply to the plant has been suspended from the gas well,” DCO of Dera Bugti Abdul Samad Lasi said. The closure of the plant could not be ruled out because of reduction in gas pressure.

He said that the gas supply to different areas of the country from the Loti gas plant could also be affected if the damaged pipelines were not repaired immediately. In another rocket attack, a water tanker was destroyed in the Pir Koh gas field area.

Meanwhile, Baloch insurgents are reported to have fired on least 12 rockets at the FC fort in Dera Bugti, damaging the fort’s walls while two rockets landed near the FC post in the Kahan area. 15.2.06
Mach and Kohlu rocked by bomb blasts

Two explosions rocked the coalmine town of Mach on Monday evening, police said. Unidentified people hurled hand-grenades in two houses which exploded with a big bang.

Windowpanes of both the houses smashed. In Another incident Baloch freedom fighters fired five rockets on an FC camp in Kohlu. Most of the rockets landed close the FC check post but government denied of any casualty. 14.2.06
Powerful blasts rock Quetta, Mastung

Quetta and Mastung were rocked by two powerful explosions on late Sunday night while an electricity supply pylon was blown up in the Barkhan area. A gas pipeline was blown up in the Loti gas field, reports reaching here said.

Police said an explosive device, planted near a house on the White Road behind the Governor’s House, went off at around midnight, creating panic in the area.

Window-panes of several houses were smashed by the powerful explosion. No loss of life or property damage was reported.

Another device exploded on the cantonment Road in Mastung, some 50kms southeast of Quetta. No casualty was reported but windowpanes of some nearby houses were smashed.

According to reports reaching here, a 132KV power supply pylon was blown up in the Barkhan area, disrupting power supply to Barkhan and Kohlu areas.

“The electric supply tower was blown up with a device containing high explosives,” official sources said.

Meanwhile, a pipeline of the Loti gas field was blown up on Sunday disrupting the gas supplies to the purification plant.

Reports reaching here said the pipeline was blown up during a heavy exchange of rocket and machine-gun fire between security forces and Bugti tribesmen in the Loti area.

“A rocket hit the gas pipeline cutting off gas supply to the Loti gas plant from well No1,” official sources said. Three other pipelines supplying gas to the plant from the field had been blown up two days ago.

Work to repair the pipelines was affected because of presence of landmines in the area.

Reports were also received of 11 rockets fired in the Pir Koh area, targeting the mess and other facilities of the OGDC Oil and Gas Development Corporation.
Meanwhile, security forces arrested five people in the Mand area in connection with a recent attack on an FC convoy near the Tump area that claimed two lives.

Those arrested were identified as Khalil Ahmed, Amanullah, Mohammad Riaz, Mohammad Dawood and Mohammad Halim.

However, spokesmen of Marri Ittehad and district nazim Mohammad Kazim Bugti said that security forces were still shelling different areas of Kahan and Dera Bugti.

“Dera Bugti town is wrecked by heavy shelling by personnel of security forces,” Kazim Bugti said. 13.2.06
Six FC men killed and 12 injured in Balochistan

Six paramilitary personnel killed and 12 others seriously injured in an incident on Saturday in the Tump area of Balochistan, in an attack by BLA.

Six FC soldiers lost their lives and 12 others seriously injured in two incidents sources said.

A convoy of Frontier Corps was attacked with rockets and automatic weapons while it was on its way to Mand from Tump, a town on the Pak-Iran border.

Baloch insurgents perched on a hilltop fired rockets at the convoy when it crossed the town and opened indiscriminate fire on the FC personnel, sources said.

“Many rockets hit in two vehicles that were leading the convoy. As a result, six FC men were killed on the spot, and 12 other FC personnel were seriously injured” the sources said.

The attackers fled into the mountains when FC personnel returned fire, sources said.

The injured personals were rushed to the FC hospital in Turbat for treatment.

Sources said that eight FC personnel who received multiple injuries after being struck with rocket splinters were said to be in a critical condition.

Meanwhile, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and Baloch Liberation Front (BLF) claimed responsibility for the attack through its joint spokesman Azad Baloch, he told reporters via satellite phone from an undisclosed location.12.2.06
One FC personnel killed and five injured in Kahan

A FC soldier was killed and five others were injured when two landmines exploded in the Kahan area of Kohlu district, officials told.

A landmine blast injured a solder in the Kahan area on Saturday. Paramilitary troops rushed to the site and rescued the injured personnel. But the vehicle carrying the FC rescue team also struck a landmine just as it was making its way to a nearby hospital.

One FC personnel identified as Shams-ur-Rehman was killed in the landmine blast.

The injured were admitted to a nearby FC hospital for treatment. 12.2.06
Three civilians and two FC personnel killed in Balochistan

Three civilians killed when Frontier Corps opened indiscriminate mortar shelling on small town after Baloch Parrarie's (Freedom Fighters) attack a FC outpost in Dera Bugti district of Balochistan on Tuesday. Baloch Parrarie's fired at least 23 rockets at the FC post  killing two FC personnel and wounding several.

JWP Jamoori Watan Party spokesman Agha Shahid Bugti said three tribesmen were killed and two were wounded when paramilitary forces shelled the town “in revenge” for the attack and landmine explosion, which killed at least two FC soldier on Tuesday.

Dera Bugti District Nazim Kazim Bugti said he had no information of any deaths. Clashes were reported in the area where security forces fired mortars into and around the town.

The government began operations in Kohlu on December 17 and in Dera Bugti on December 30. Baloch leaders claim that about 170 people have been killed, including women and children, in the two districts since the operations began.

The government says that the operations are targeted against militant training camps set up by Baloch Parrari’s (freedom fighters) in the province. But Baloch Nationalists leaders allege that the government is using force against Baloch masses to drive them out of their land to seize the natural resources in Balochistan. 2.2.06
Several FC soldiers killed and injured in landmine blasts 1.2.06

A Frontier Corps solider was killed and five personnel were injured in two landmine explosions in Pirkoh and Kahan areas while heavy fighting was reported between Baloch freedom fighters and Pakistani army in Dera Bugti on Tuesday.

Sources said that an FC vehicle was blown up when it hit a landmine planted in Pathar Nullah area near the Pirkoh gas field. Soldier Sanaullah died at the spot and two five FC men Mohammed Iqbal, Shakeel Ahmed and etc were injured.

“We have lost one FC soldier in the anti-tank mine blast,” the district coordination officer of Dera Bugti said and added that the FC personnel were present in the area in connection with the repair of a water supply pipeline.

A report said that two FC personnel traveling on a pick-up were seriously wounded when their vehicle hit a roadside landmine in Kahan area of the Kohlu district. Sources said that security forces defused another landmine that was planted in the same area.

Meanwhile, heavy fighting was reported in Dera Bugti between Pakistani army and Baloch guerrillas. The firing erupted at around 11am and continued till evening.

“Baloch rebels are lobbing rockets and mortar shells at the Frontier Corps fort in Dera Bugti town,” a senior official of the Dera Bugti administration said. Several government buildings were damaged in attacks, he added.

Sources said that several rockets landed and exploded near the FC fort located in Dera Bugti. The FC personnel took positions at different places and returned fire.

The Jamhoori Watan Party sources alleged that the FC personnel perched on hilltops were firing rockets at civilian population.

“Yes, heavy fighting continued in Dera Bugti till late evening, claiming a number of lives,” sources said.

JWP secretary-general Agha Shahid Bugti informed said that three Bugti civilian were killed and another was injured on Tuesday.

Other sources said that Baloch insurgents had fired dozens of rockets at the FC bases and check-posts in different parts of Kohlu, Kahan and Loti.

A convoy of the Oil and Gas Development Corporation going to Loti gas field from Kashmor also came under a rocket attack.

“At least half a dozen rockets were fired at the convoy from mountains,” official sources said.

one dozen FC men have been killed so far and over dozens others FC and army personnel injured in landmine explosions in the Kohlu and Dera Bugti districts during the past one-and-a-half months. 1.2.06
Rockets fired at FC camp, checkpoints: Blast rocks Hub

Several rockets were fired at a Frontier Corps camp and check-posts in the Prkoh gasfield and the Nal area in Kahan while a powerful explosion rocked Hub, an industrial town in Balochistan on Monday.

Meanwhile, the gas supply to the Uch power plant could not be restored as the blown up gas pipeline could not be repaired.

Baloch Pararri’s (guerrilla) launched rocket attack and heavy gun fire attack on the Pirkoh gas field area early Monday morning, which damaged several barracks in a official residential colony.

“Around 45 rockets and mortar shells were fired that exploded in different areas of the Prkoh gas field,” officials confirmed over telephone. They said that half a dozen rockets landed near the Prkoh gas field while the OGDC officers’ mess was also targeted.

“The Prkoh airfield remained safe during the attack as none of the rockets landed near it,” DCO Dera Bugti Samad Lasi said. He said that some houses had been damaged in the OGDC employees’ colony.

Heavy exchange of fire was also reported from the Nal area in Kohlu district on Monday. Armed men fired eight rockets on the FC check post, the reports said. Rockets landed and exploded in the check post, they said.

“Security forces used heavy weapons for attacking Baloch Pararri’s (guerrilla) in the Kahan and Nal areas,” Allah Bakhsh Marri, a tribal elder of the Marri tribe told this correspondent over telephone. He maintained that helicopter gunships were being used in Nal and Kahan and other areas.

He claimed that many rockets and mortar shells had exploded in residential areas. Meanwhile, a powerful explosion occurred near the building of sessions court in Hub.

Police arrested 10 persons belonging to the Marri tribe from the New Kahan camp in Quetta on Monday morning. 31.1.06
Army operation continues in Balochistan, 11 women and children killed in Kahan

At least eleven people were killed in Pakistani army shelling in Kahan and surrounding area of Kohlu district on Sunday, while a pipeline supplying gas to the Uch power plant was blown up near Dera Murad Jamali. Also on Sunday, traffic between Khuzdar and Karachi remained suspended for several hours after a bridge on the RCD highway was blown up near Wadh.

Two powerful explosions rocked the Wadh town and a house was attacked with a hand-grenade in the Shahbaz town of Quetta.

According to sources, Marri tribesmen told that paramilitary forces had taken over control of the Kahan town which had been under heavy attack for two days. Most of the people of Kahan are reported to have left the town. Armed forces fired at least 700 to 1000 rockets, mortars shells fired rockets from Gunship helicopters and fighter jets bombarded in the area of Kahan. Most of the rockets fell and exploded in open areas but a few of them hit the residential areas of the town.

It is belived that at least eleven people had been killed in Kahan and several injuries most of then are women and children, while Marri tribesmen put the death toll much higher.

“Kahan town is under the control of security forces,” Marri tribesman Allah Bakhsh Marri said, adding that a heavy contingent of military forces had been deployed in the town.

The attack on the pipeline supplying gas to the Uch power plant in Dera Murad Jamali from the Uch gas field resulted in closure of the plant. The plant was shut at around 9 pm.

Baloch insurgents planted high explosives around the 24-inch diameter pipeline and blew it up near Goth Khadim Hussain in tehsil Chatter of Dera Murad Jamali, the pipeline caught fire after the explosion and supply of the gas through the pipeline was stopped. The closure of the plant affected power supply to some areas of Quetta, Sibi, Nasirabad and other parts of the province.

The pipeline supplying gas to the Uch power plant has been blown up for the second time in one-and-a-half weeks. On Jan 4, the pipeline was blown up in the same area resulting in suspension of power generation for three days.

In another incident, which occurred some 8 km from the Wadh town, a bridge on the RCD Highway, linking Balochistan with Karachi, was blown up. Traffic between Khuzdar and Karachi was suspended after the explosion. Hundreds of vehicles were stranded on both sides of the damaged bridge. However, NHA engineers restored traffic through a diversion.

In Quetta, some people attacked a house of a Punjabi officer in Shahbaz Town’s phase- 3 with a hand-grenade on late Sunday night. The grenade exploded in the backyard of the house smashing windowpanes and doors of the house. Reports reaching here said that a number of rockets were fired on an FC check post in Barkhan area. However, no details received yet. 15.1.06
Nine army personnel killed and 8 injured in Balochistan

In two days nine army personnel have been killed in Balochistan in insurgent attacks.

Three armed forces personnel killed when a roadside bomb blast hit their vehicle near pirkoh near the Pirkoh gasfield, about 400 kilometers southeast of Quetta.

The three paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) soldiers killed and three were wounded when their vehicle carrying food for the gas-field was hit by a remote controlled bomb. Shortly afterwards dozens of armed insurgents attacked the gasfield, which is near Dera Bugti.

Separately, dozens rockets fired by Baloch insurgents struck a camp housing soldiers at Margat Indus, a coal mining area about 75 kilometers east of Quetta, killing three, army solders and injuring five personnel. The BLA claimed responsibility for the attack.

Also, two bombs damaged a stretch of railway track in Quetta late on Thursday, but no injuries were reported, police said on Friday.

Meanwhile, Baloch insurgents blown up a gas pipeline near Kandhkot town, Sindh, on Thursday, and gas supplies to consumers were also completely suspended, police and a gas company official said. Agencies 13.1.06
Twelve Bugti tribesmen murdered by army personnel

In an attack by Baloch insurgents on Pakistani army in Pirco area of Dera Bugti District, three army personnel killed and four injured.

In retaliation of this attack Pakistani army arrested twelve innocent Bugti tribesmen and later murdered them in cold blood.

Balochvoice strongly condemns the slaughter of Baloch Nation and its innocent Sons and Daughters by evil Punjabi Army.

Balochvoice urges all peace loving people around the world and specifically Baloch youth to unite and raise their voice against such massacre of their people.

Until and unless the Baloch don’t unite and put a leash on this mad Punjabi army, Baloch will keep on enduring a life of humiliation and slavery. Baloch will be subjected to army operations and suppression again and again. Forget not it is the fifth army operation in Balochistan since its annexation in Punjabi Pakistan. 12.1.06
Bomb and rocket attacks in different parts of Balochistan

Powerful bomb explosions rocked and insurgent attacks in Quetta, Kalat, Wadh, Hub, Noshki, Mach, Harnai, Sibi and other cities of Balochistan.

Several army and paramilitary personnel killed and seriously injured in these attacks. According to details at least 15 army and paramilitary personnel killed and at least 22 seriously injured in these incidences.

It is worth mentioning since the start of army operation in Balochistan, insurgency has intensified many folds. 12.1.06
Three FC personnel killed and six injured in land mine explosion

A vehicle carrying troops of Frontier Corpse collided with a land mine at Karmo Wadh, killing three and injuring six FC personnel.

According to sources, a truck of the FC troops was on its way to an outpost camp from Sibi when it hit a landmine and exploded. The mine was so powerful that it ripped the truck to pieces killing three on the spot and seriously injuring six. The serious injuries were taken to Central Military Hospital CMH Quetta.

In another incident insurgents blew up an electricity tower in Baber Kuch area of Sibi. BLA claimed responsibility for the attacks. 11.1.06
One FC man killed two injured in gun battle near Loti

A Frontier Corps man was killed and two others injured in a gun battle between Baloch insurgents and security forces in the Loti gas field Dera Bugti area on Tuesday while a heavy exchange of fire was reported from the Dera Bugti Township.

According to sources, the fighting erupted in the afternoon when an attack was launched on the Loti gas field.

One FC man was killed and two others wounded seriously, Sources claimed that both sides were using rockets and missiles against each other. The fighting continued till late evening.

Three rockets also exploded in a village Ghulam Bolak area close to Sibi airfield. Reports reaching here from Mach say that security forces continued operation in coalmine area of Margat and Marwar against Baloch insurgents.

Spokesman of BLA (Baloch Liberation Army) Mr., Meerik Baloch, claimed that security forces suffered heavy loss of life in Margat area during last three days of fighting.11.1.05
Five blasts rock Kalat, Hub areas

Five explosions rocked Kalat and Hub areas of the province on Monday while paramilitary forces and insurgents fought pitched battles in the Margat coalmine area of Bolan district.

Three powerful blasts hit the Kalat Township at brief intervals. The blasts were triggered by powerful bombs which were planted in a football stadium close to the Frontier Corps Mess and the DCO’s office.

The window panes of the FC Mess, DCO offices and other nearby government buildings and houses were smashed. Official sources, however, confirmed only one blast even though residents of the township had heard three loud explosions.

Two equally intense blasts were reported from the industrial town of Hub. The first blast damaged a part of the wall of a police station. Another blast occurred near the coast guard office in Hub.

Meanwhile, there was a heavy exchange of fire between security forces and insurgents in Margat coalmine area. Rockets and mortars were used in the battle.

A spokesman for the Baloch Liberation Army, Azad Baloch, said the Baloch insurgents had dug in their heels and were putting up a strong resistance against security forces in the Margat area.

The spokesman told reporters that the BLA had engaged the Frontier Corps in a fire-fight in Mand, an area situated close to the country’s border with Iran.

Reports from Dera Bugti said that firing incident had taken place in various parts of Dera Bugti district and township on Monday. 10.1.06
Railway track blown up, Nine killed in clashes in Balochistan

A railway track connecting Quetta with Taftan, the town on the border with Iran, was blown up on Wednesday night. Meanwhile, nine people were killed in clashes in Dera Bugti.

Sources said that a powerful device exploded near a bridge on Kishangi Railway Station situated some 110 kilometres west of Quetta, and severely damaging track.

The railway track connects Quetta with the Iranian, railway officials were told to stop the trains on the track as an unexploded device still lay on it. As Naushki district does not have a bomb disposal squad, and a team from Quetta will travel to dispose of it.

There were reports of casualties in clashes between paramilitary forces Baloch Parrarie's (freedom fighters) in Dera Bugti. Locals said that at least nine people, including women and children, were feared dead in the conflict. They said that paramilitary forces attacked the main town late in the evening.

The area had been evacuated in anticipation of a clash between security forces and Baloch Parrarie's, but 20-30 percent of the town’s population had returned since then, local said.

Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) leader Agha Shahid Bugti said that seven gunship helicopters had attacked locals near Bekar where two women and 11 children were injured.

In another incident, four paramilitary personnel including a major were injured when their vehicle struck a landmine near Loti Gas Plant on Wednesday.

DCO Dera Bugti Lasi confirmed that four personnel of the Frontier Corps were injured when their vehicle struck a landmine near the gas plant at the same place where Bugti tribesmen had cut a water pipeline to the plant on Tuesday.

The DCO also claimed that Bugti tribesmen had attacked FC check-posts near Dera Bugti and Sui, but no casualties were reported.

Sources add: armed forces clashed with Baloch Parrarie's (freedom fighters) near a state-run gas plant in late on Wednesday, and said that that repair work on the Uch gas plant pipeline was started early on Wednesday. The pipe was supplying gas to the Uch Power Plant. Electricity supply was suspended to some areas after the incident.

In another incidence Baloch Parrarie’s attacked gas plant in Sui by firing 10 rockets and heavy machine gun fire at a security checkpoint killing two and wounded four FC personnel.

JWP chief Akbar Bugti said accused security forces of killing one civilian and wounding 21 others, including four women, in unprovoked shooting on Wednesday in different locations in Sui and the nearby town of Dera Bugti. 5.1.06
Gas pipeline blown up; 8 die and 10 army men hurt in Balochistan

A vehicle of Army some 25 kilometres in the area of Tili and Karmo Wadh hit a landmine, 8 Army personnel died on the spot and six were seriously injured. The vehicle completely destroyed.

Meanwhile, in an another incident, Four FC personnel, including a major, were seriously injured in landmine explosions near Sibi and in the area of Dera Bugti in two separate incidents on Wednesday.

Frontier Corps personnel were on their way to fix water pipeline at Loti Gas Field when their vehicle hit a landmine that was planted in the Loti area of Dera Bugti.
The injured were identified as Major Amir, Naib Subedar Zila Shah, Havaldar Muhammad Khalid and Sepoy Mazhruddin. The injured were shifted to PPL Hospital Sui.

Meanwhile, Baloch fighters blew up a gas pipeline in Balochistan early on Wednesday, shutting down supplies to Uch power plant

Two blasts damaged a 24-inch (60 cm) diameter pipeline at two places in the Dera Murad Jamali area, about 220 km (140 miles) southeast of Quetta, cutting off the gas supply to the nearby Uch private power plant.

The local people of said the blasts had damaged two sections of pipeline, one about 10 feet (three metres) long and the other about eight feet (2.4 metres) long suppling gas to 586-megawatt Uch power plant,.
An official said the plant would remain closed until the pipeline was repaired,, which is not owned by the power plant, but he could not say how long time this would take.

Reports also received from the Sui area that army conducted raids on different places at the labor quarter area and arrested three persons including Ghafor, Khuwajahu Takani and Saifullah Bugti. 4.1.06