Pakistan’s relative calm is now occasionally breached with blasts or targeted killings in Balochistan. On Friday, it was again in the grip of bloodshed when two Frontier Corps (FC) personnel were martyred and five others injured in an explosion in Quetta’s Kuchlak area. The explosion is believed to be caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) which hit the vehicle of the patrolling personnel in the old Kuchlak Bypass area. The injured are being treated for their life-threatening injuries, and we pray for their early recovery. A similar IED blast had claimed the lives of a Rapid Response Force sniper on Quetta’s Double Road area on October 15. On October 21, another IED blast targeted law enforcement agencies personnel on Quetta’s Spinny Road where at least two policemen and as many civilians were injured.
The recent blast puts Kuchlak under the spotlight again. In September, this area saw the targeted killings of clerics associated with the Afghan Taliban. Of the two prayer leaders killed within days, one was the brother of Afghan Taliban chief Haibatullah Akhundzada. The other deceased was also an Afghan citizen and had been the imam of the mosque for many years. Though those attacks were considered to be the aftermath of the internal fighting between Taliban ranks, the recent blast targeting the FC personnel may point to the fact that the Taliban are targeting local law enforcement agencies. If this is true it is very sad that the Taliban or their sympathisers in Kuchlak, who are pledging peace in Afghanistan in dialogue with the US, China, and Russia, have resorted to violence against the law-enforcement agencies. In the wake of the recent attack, it is imperative for agencies to launch an operation on a massive scale and purge the area of local and foreign militants. Their presence will keep creating multiple security challenges to the writ of the government and local populations, such as Shia Hazaras.
Balochistan and federal government should also revisit the political and economic fault lines of the province stemming from the sense of deprivation prevailing for decades. The launch of the Gwadar Port and other China-Pakistan Economic Corridor related projects offer enormous opportunities for the people of Balochistan. Very soon, the mine-and-mineral-rich province will see the tide of riches and prosperity coming to its people. This can happen at the earliest if the province is at peace. *