Quetta, July 8,2026: At least 19 militants were killed and 11 security personnel embraced martyrdom during an intelligence-based operation against Fitna al-Hindustan militants along the N-25 highway in Balochistan, security sources said on Wednesday.
According to the sources, the operation was carried out between Jhao Cross and Kararo, where militants had set up blockades and were extorting money from passengers and local residents.
Security sources said the operation reflected the state’s resolve to protect the lives and property of the public and ensure the security of highways, vowing that every attempt to hold Balochistan’s peace hostage would be answered.
The operation came a day after armed assailants attacked a police checkpoint in the Mangi area of Ziarat district late Monday night, martyring nine police personnel and abducting five others.
Ziarat Superintendent of Police Abdul Qudoos said the attackers stormed the checkpoint, triggering a gun battle in which nine policemen were martyred before the assailants took five personnel with them.
Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have witnessed a sharp rise in militant violence since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021, with Pakistan repeatedly accusing militant groups of using Afghan territory to launch attacks inside the country.
Pakistan has since intensified counterterrorism operations, including Operation Ghazab lil-Haq, which authorities say targeted militant hideouts across the border. Border tensions between Islamabad and Kabul have also remained high amid Pakistan’s insistence that the Afghan Taliban authorities have failed to take effective action against terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil.
