QUETTA: A Pakistani military drone attack in Balochistan’s Mastung district has resulted in one fatality and multiple injuries among women, fueling fresh outrage over civilian targeting in the province’s ongoing insurgency. The strike hit a home in Kurdgap, severely wounding Abdul Samad, who later died while being transported for treatment.
Eyewitness accounts and local media detail how the women in the household were also hurt, receiving initial aid before evacuation to Quetta. This incident unfolds against a backdrop of intensified operations following deadly strikes by Baloch militants on army personnel.
It’s not an isolated event. Reports indicate repeated civilian harm from such tactics. Notably, on March 31, mortar fire in Awaran killed 60-year-old Mohammad Omar, his 57-year-old wife Faiza, and their young daughter Mahjabeh in a residential area near a military outpost. Security forces reportedly retaliated to a militant assault with heavy weaponry, including shells that landed in populated zones.
Organizations like PAANK from the Baloch National Movement and Baloch Voice for Justice decry these as grave infractions of global norms on warfare, stressing the duty to differentiate combatants from non-combatants and ensure proportional responses. Appeals to Pakistani authorities for immediate reforms have grown louder, joined by international human rights bodies.
The cycle of violence raises alarms about long-term stability. With operations persisting, the human cost mounts, prompting calls for investigations, ceasefires, and political solutions to the separatist grievances plaguing Balochistan for decades.
