Amid beating from India, Baloch rebels also claim 71 attacks on Pakistani forces

At a time when Pakistan has taken a beating from India in Operation Sindoor, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has said that it has conducted 71 attacks against the Pakistani regime at 51 locations in its ongoing ‘Operation Herof’.

The BLA is the primary armed group part of the self-determination movement of the Baloch people. The present-day Balochistan was forcibly integrated into Pakistan in 1948 and the Baloch people have since accused the Pakistani regime of their marginalisation, exploitation of their resources without sharing the profits with them, and systemic violence in form of state-sponsored killings and forced disappearances.

The Balochistan Post has reported BLA Spokesperson Jeeyand Baloch as saying in a statement on Sunday that the group has carried out 71 coordinated attacks at 51 locations in Balochistan. He described these attacks as part preparation for the next phase of Operation Herof.

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The development has come at a time when India has devastated at least eight airbases of Pakistan in addition to air defence and radar sites. India has also struck ground troops that were moving in forward areas. These strikes came after Pakistan mounted multiple rounds of unsuccessful attacks on almost the entire northern and northwestern India after India last week struck nine terrorist sites in Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK) in response to the Pahalgam terrorist attack. India maintains that Pakistan-backed terrorists carried out the Pahalgam attack.

BLA to ramp up its campaign against Pakistan

BLA Spokesperson Jeeyand said that 71 operations conducted so far were aimed to test “military coordination, ground control and defensive positions,” and strengthen the group’s readiness for future “organized war”, according to The Balochistan Post.

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The BLA launched Operation Herof in August 2024. Analysts consider the operation as the largest and most coordinated armed campaign as part of the Baloch self-determination movement.

Jeeyand further said that the targets in these 71 attacks included Pakistani military convoys, checkpoints, intelligence agencies, mineral transport vehicles, and members of state-backed militias.

In addition to Pakistani rule in Balochistan, the BLA has also opposed Chinese presence in the region. The group has mounted attacks against Chinese as well in the province. The opposition is linked to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). As China’s presence has increased in the province because of the large number of Chinese projects in the region under CPEC, the BLA has also targeted Chinese interests.

In the attacks in the campaign so far, around 130 Pakistani military personnel have been killed, according to the country’s military.

Double whammy for Pakistan?

The BLA has decided to up the ante at a time when Pakistan is already engaged with India full-time.

At such a time, the BLA opening another front against Pakistan could bog down the country at a time of weakness.

Last year, when there was no distraction for Pakistan, the BLA conducted 32 attacks, including six suicide attack, and killed around 130 people. The BLA has said it intends to use the distraction to the fullest and raise the heat.