Quetta, Dec 1 (NVI) In a daring operation, a group of fighters of Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF) tonight stormed a heavily-guarded complex housing foreigners associated with the Reko Diq and Saindak copper and gold mining projects in occupied Balochistan.
Reko Diq and Saindik are Gold and Copper mining facilities, operated by the Pakistan government along with some foreign companies. The indigenous people of Balochistan have been complaining that the rich natural resources of their land are being looted by the occupier Pakistan.
The complex in Nokundi in Chagai district of Balochistan was attacked by the members of Sado Operational Battalion (SOB), a unit of BLF, said a statement issued by the outfit fighting for freedom of Balochistan from Pakistani occupation.
“The subunit of the Balochistan Liberation Front, SOB, has initiated a heavy attack on the main compound of the foreign staff and engineers related to Saindak and Reko Diq projects. The operation is still ongoing. A detailed statement will be released after the conclusion of the operation,” the statement said.
According to local reports, the attack was initiated by a suicide bomber who blew himself up at the main entrance of the compound having the security of the Pakistani paramilitary force, the Frontier Corps.
Several other heavily-armed associates of the suicide bomber then entered the premises, after which loud noise of firing and blasts started.
The targeting of the key projects of Pakistan government came amidst a wave of attacks by Baloch freedom fighters across Balochistan during the last 24 hours.
Baloch freedom fighters targeted Pakistani forces, detonating IEDs, ambushing soldiers and attacking checkposts at various places in the occupied Balochistan.
The attacks took place despite the Pakistani authorities suspending internet and shutting down transport services and several urban centres in apprehension of such developments.
This demonstrates the prowess of the Baloch fighters to carry out attacks at their will.
Chagai district houses huge quantities of Gold and Copper deposits and is ranked among the world’s largest reserves of the rich natural resources.
SOB, a new unit, is named after Saadat Marri alias Mama Sado, who is one of the founding members of the BLF. He was killed on December 3, 2007, while fighting with Pakistani forces in Kech.
Saadat Marri had been involved in earlier phases of the Baloch resistance, including the movements of 1964 and the 1972 insurgency.
He and his family had shifted to Afghanistan in 1977 along with many other Baloch families in the wake of Pakistani repression.
However, he returned in 1992 along with other Baloch refugees and settled near the Hazar Ghanji mountains.
When armed resistance reorganised in Makran around 2004, he again took part, joining younger fighters within the platform of the BLF despite his age.
The BLF’s move to launch a dedicated unit named after one of its historic figures, combined with its first suicide operation, reflects a shift in strategy and internal structuring which is likely to influence future dynamics in the region. (NVI)
