‘We will fight this war’: CM Bugti says 145 terrorists killed in 40 hours across Balochistan – Pakistan
Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti on Sunday expressed the firm resolve to eliminate terrorists after a spate of coordinated attacks across the province, adding that 145 militants were killed within a span of 40 hours.
The military’s media affairs wing said terrorists of Fitna-al-Hindustan carried out a spate of attacks across Balochistan on Saturday, responding to which the security forces killed 92 terrorists.
The state has designated Balochistan-based terrorist groups as Fitna-al-Hindustan to highlight India’s alleged role in terrorism and destabilisation across Pakistan.
Addressing a press conference in Quetta on Sunday, CM Bugti said 145 terrorists were killed in 40 hours, adding that their bodies were in the custody of the authorities.
“This is the highest number since Pakistan is facing this war on terror,” he highlighted.
“Our 17 law enforcement people, including police and FC and one Navy personnel, were martyred, and our civilian casualties are 31, including some injured,” CM Bugti said.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) had said on Saturday night that 15 personnel were martyred during the operations and 18 civilians, including women and children, were also killed during the attacks.
Stating that the state shared the grief of bereaved families, CM Bugti assured them that the welfare of the martyrs’ children was the government’s responsibility.
“We had intelligence reports that this kind of operation is being planned, and as a result of those, we had already started pre-operations a day before, in which around 40 terrorists were killed in Shaban and Panjgur,” he detailed.
The chief minister noted that the terrorists had planned to attack Quetta from Shaban, adding that the forces were “very vigilant”.
CM Bugti termed the Gwadar incident, where he said five women and three children were killed, as the “most painful”.
Noting that a narrative of independence had been created, he said terrorists were using the Baloch on India’s instructions.
“Whenever Pakistan begins to take off economically or on foreign fronts, you try to destabilise Pakistan by carrying out such attacks on India’s directives.”
The chief minister said the terrorists had planned to enter the Red Zone and occupy important assets, which were foiled.
However, he added, “Except for Nushki, where it took us some time to disengage them. Nushki is completely clear now.”
CM Bugti said tracing and combing operations were underway and vowed, “We will not let them go.”
The chief minister also assailed attempts to frame terrorism as a “political issue”.
“Is BLA a registered party with whom you have to hold a dialogue? […] They purely want to impose their ideology on us with the force of guns and push the Baloch into a futile war. […] You are linking this war with deprivation and rationalising this violence too.”
He asserted that “rationalising this violence in the name of ethno-nationalism was a direct support to BLA”.
Bugti then asked what some people wished for to be the outcome of such a dialogue. “As a result of dialogue, they want us to surrender? We will not. We will fight this war for a thousand years,” he affirmed.
“We are not ready to surrender even for a second. They can carry out a thousand such attacks. They can destabilise us, but they cannot take an inch from us. This Pakistan is not for breaking away. These people cannot do it. And neither can their masters.”
CM Bugti said “tools such as certain Sardars and social media” were being used to “disintegrate” the youth from the state. He expressed the resolve to further boost engagement with the population and the youth.
Responding to a question, he asserted that terrorists were only terrorists and that it upset him when they were called “Baloch terrorists”.
Noting that terrorists blend themselves within the civilian population, the chief minister asked, “Should we become brutal like them?
“We could kill 10 [terrorists] by throwing one mortar, but what about the 20 civilians with them? This is the only reason why we do not want to become brutal like them.”
CM Bugti also took exception to those arguing that the Balochistan “issue cannot be solved with force”. “When has force ever been used in Balochistan?” he asked rhetorically, adding that no military operation was conducted in any city.
“It is a purely intelligence-driven war,” the chief minister stressed, noting that only intelligence-based operations (IBOs) were conducted in the province.
He also accused India’s Research & Analysis Wing (RAW) of backing the terrorist activities, asserting that the authorities had “solid and circumstantial evidence”.
Responding to a question, CM Bugti expressed the state’s firm resolve to continue the war against terrorism.
“Why will we get tired? We are the state of Pakistan. We will not get tired,” he said, adding that military operations were not needed currently as IBOs were being carried out.
The chief minister noted that while “all kinds” of arms were employed in the recent attacks, those left behind after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan had “spread into the market and were provided to them by their masters”.
Responding to a query about the Safe City project, CM Bugti highlighted that cameras linked to the network were also targeted as they were a “threat” to them.
Asked about the surge in terrorism, the chief minister noted there were “people who adopted the policy of appeasement and the institutions” that did the same after 2018.
Pointing out that the institution had “punished their person”, the PPP leader asked whether the political leadership that did the same had held its people accountable.
“The biggest reason behind the rise [in terrorism] today is the post-2018 appeasement,” CM Bugti asserted.
‘Mopping-up’ operation underway: defence minister
Separately, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said peace has been established in Balochistan after yesterday’s attacks and security forces were now “engaged in a mopping-up operation”.
“At this moment in time, peace has been established, and the coordinated attack has been repulsed completely, and they (terrorists) have retreated,” Asif said while addressing the media in Sialkot.
The defence minister further said that attempts were made to “target the FC (Frontier Corps) headquarters” in Nushki and Dalbadin, adding that all attacks were foiled.
“They attempted to carry out a suicide attack in Dalbadin,” he said, adding that “all targets have been neutralised”.
Echoing Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s statements, Asif blamed the incidents on neighbouring India, adding that the attacks aimed to “destabilise the country at a time when it is on the path to progress”.
“Our intelligence and the confessional statements by terrorists all prove linkages to India,” the defence minister said.
The minister said that the BLA was now “making use of female bombers”, detailing that women were involved in at least “two attacks in the 12 cities targeted” on Saturday.
He added that in an attack in Pasni, the terrorists made use of a “female suicide bomber”.
“The minds of young women are being polluted,” he said, adding that the BLA was now targeting “labourers and poor people struggling to survive”.
“Their handlers are sitting in Afghanistan, and indoctrinating young children to be used for their nefarious purposes,” he added.
Asif noted that terrorists were able to “operate easily” owing to Balochistan’s vast and sparsely populated area, vowing that the government would “work towards ending this advantage”.
US remains Pakistan’s ‘steadfast partner’ in efforts to ensure peace
Earlier in the day, US Charge de’ Affaires Natalie Baker strongly condemned the Balochistan terrorist attacks and affirmed that the United States remained a “steadfast partner” of Pakistan in efforts to ensure peace.
“The United States strongly condemns January 31 attacks and acts of terrorist violence against security personnel and civilians in Balochistan, claimed by the Balochistan Liberation Army, a US-designated Foreign Terrorist Organisation,” Baker said on X.
On behalf of the US, she extended condolences to the victims of terrorism, their families and all those affected. “The Pakistani people deserve to live free from violence and fear,” she said.
Baker added: “The United States remains a steadfast partner of Pakistan in its efforts to ensure peace and stability. We stand in solidarity with Pakistan during this difficult time.”
In August 2025, the US also designated the BLA and its Majeed Brigade squad as foreign terrorist organisations (FTOs).
Besides the US, the British High Commission, Qatar and Saudi Arabia had also condemned the latest terrorist activities.
The interior minister held India responsible for the series of attacks, asserting that the authorities would go after every single one of those involved and the “masters behind them”.
In 2024, the BLA emerged as a key perpetrator of terrorist violence in Pakistan.
