Members of the Pakistan Mine Workers Federation chanted slogans during a protest in Quetta on October 11, 2024, against the killing of coal miners in Balochistan's Duki district. — AFP file
Five individuals were killed in an assault by armed men on a small dam construction site in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province, officials reported on Tuesday, highlighting the deteriorating security situation in the mineral-rich region. Although no group claimed responsibility for the attack, the province has experienced a surge in strikes by separatist ethnic militants. Earlier this month, 21 miners working at privately-run coal mines were killed in a separate attack.
A decades-long insurgency in Balochistan by separatist militant groups has resulted in frequent attacks against the government, army, and Chinese interests in the region, as they push for a share in the mineral-rich regional resources. China operates a strategic deepwater port and a gold and copper mine in the province, and has been collaborating with Islamabad to enhance infrastructure in the underdeveloped area. Several attacks have targeted migrant workers employed by smaller, privately-operated mines.
The five deceased, along with two injured, were all working at the construction site in Panjgur, according to a statement by the Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind, who noted that the attack occurred late at night. A police official, speaking on condition of anonymity, stated that nearly a dozen assailants were involved in the attack, and the victims were guarding equipment at the dam construction site on behalf of a private contractor.
"Such cowardly attacks will not weaken the government's determination to develop Balochistan," Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif stated in a release.
Source link: https://www.khaleejtimes.com
