Balochistan Liberation Army

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Balochistan Liberation Army Baloch Ajoee Lashkar
File:Flag of the Balochistan Liberation Army.svg
Leaders	Unknown
Ideology	Baloch nationalism
Status	unknown

The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) is a Baloch nationalist militant secessionist organization. The stated goals of the organization include the establishment of an independent state of Balochistan free of Pakistani and Iranian occupation. The name Baloch Liberation Army first became public in summer 2000, after the organization claimed credit for a series of bomb attacks in markets and railways lines. In 2006, the BLA was declared to be a terrorist organization by the Pakistani, US and British governments.

Leadership

File:Balachmarri.jpg

Balach Marri

Some believe that Mir Balach Marri, son of Baloch tribal leader Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri, was the head of the BLA but Balach denied this, stating he knew of the BLA and supports them morally and physically, but is not their chief. Balach Marri survived an attack by Pakistani law enforcement agencies on 26 August 2006. In addition to Balach Marri, the grandsons of Akbar Khan Bugti, Brahamdagh Khan Bugti and Mir Aley also survived. However, Balach Marri was killed in another attack on November 21, 2007.. His killing triggered a wave of violence in Balochistan and led to broad condemnation, Benazir Bhutto said the killing was “a bad omen for the integrity of the Federation”, whilst the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said "the incident was likely to increase the anger of the people of Balochistan against the Pakistan Government". The cause and location of his death are unknown. There are at least three locations quoted for the incident, ranging from Helmand province in Afghanistan (in a mistaken NATO air strike), to the Pak-Afghan border in the Nushki area, to Kahan area in Kohlu district in the Marri tribal area, the latter two at the hands of the Pakistani security forces, his killing sparked a wave of violence in Quetta and several killed. Although a BLA spokesman confirmed the killing of the BLA commander, he was reluctant to give out any further information as to location or how many of his comrades may have been killed with him, for fear, he said, of compromising the safety of other BLA fighters. Most of the BLA's and other similar terrorist outfits' leadership is currently based in Afghanistan's provinces adjacent to Pakistani territory - with many receiving joint Afghan-Indian help - see below.

Involvement in Terrorism

The Balochistan Liberation Army has been listed as an organization that funds, and promotes terrorism . On 17 July 2006 the government of the United Kingdom listed the BLA as a terrorist outfit and banned their members from the UK. The group has also been listed a terror group by the US Dept. for homeland Security. Due to BLA's designation as a terrorist organization by the British Home Office, any member associated with the group is barred from entering the UK. The BLA is notorious for carrying out bombings and shootings against innocent civilians & similar targets that do not see the Baloch cause from its point of view.

A special Roundtable Conference of distinguished experts and analysts on South Asian affairs organized by the RAND Corporation took place on March 31, 2009. In the discussion that followed; RAND Corporation's Christine Fair - who has an intimate knowledge of South Asian issues - argued that she had no doubts about Indian involvement, and that India was actively - even proactively - aiding BLA's terrorist activities in Pakistan to destabilize the Balochistan province. She went on to argue that India was using its diplomatic missions in Iran's Zahedan province and Afghanistan's Mazar-e-Sharif enclave to pump money and arms to BLA terrorists; a fact admitted to her by Indian officials in private discussions .

Activities of the Balochistan Liberation Army

The BLA has claimed responsibility for attacking Pakistani security forces. In an interview to private TV channel in Pakistan on 15 April 2009, one of their leaders, Brahamdagh Khan Bugti to prove themselves as being Baloch. The interview was conducted over a telephonic-link as Brahamdagh Khan Bugti was in hiding in Afghanistan.

June, 2000: By and large the victims of BLA are unarmed civilians specially of Punjabi origin. This includes doctors, professors and mostly barbers which are said to be spies by Baloch. A number of bombs were detonated by BLA activists in the commercial district of Quetta, the provincial capital of Pakistani Balochistan, an area often frequented by the Pakistani military personnel. The explosions resulted in the deaths of 26 soldiers and 5 civilians, and the wounding of many others.

July, 2000: Fifteen 82-mm mortar shells of Russian-made were fired from the Koh-i-Murdar mountain range near Quetta, targeting the city's military garrison. No official casualty report was issued by the Pakistani military to the press in Balochistan. * Numerous deaths of Pakistani soldiers have resulted from landmines planted by BLA.

May, 03, 2004: Three Chinese engineers working on a hydropower project that would enable irrigation for poor Baloch farmers as part of Pakistani government's initiatives were killed while another 11 injured in a car bomb attack by BLA. In June & July 2004, another five terrorist attacks followed that included the use of IEDs.

Aug, 18, 2006: The Asaap media-outlet reported on Thursday 17 August that the Pakistan Army was conducting a search operation against BLA fighters 12 kilometers away from Karmo Wadh, near Sibi. During the ongoing operation, Pakistani forces came under heavy barrage of rocket fire from Baloch fighters that claimed the lives of three Pakistani soldiers while wounding another seven. (Names of soldiers K.I.A are: NCO Amjad Ali, NCO Tasawer Hussen and NCO Matloob Hussen. Names of the critically wounded soldiers: Major Qaiser, Hawaldar Anser, Corporal Mudser Hussen, NCO Majid Hussen, NCO Ishfaq Ahmed, NCO Janzeb and NCO Ashraf.) All the wounded were shifted to CMH (Combined Military Hospital) Hospital Sibi. In another such incident, 40kms from Sangsila at Bambore-Top, Dera Bugti area; Pakistani soldiers were caught up in a landmine explosiong (planted by BLA) while digging trenches on Bambore-Top. Soldiers K.I.A included: Naib Subedar Kashmir Afridi and NCO Abdul Khaliq Afridi; while five soldiers were critically wounded (names of the wounded were not confirmed). The rockets as well as heavy weaponry used by BLA fighters have been confirmed to be of Indian/Russian-made origin owing to equipment and ammunition captured by Pakistan Army troops in different search & destroy operations.

Note: Bambore is a mountain located in the east of Sibi and north of Dera Bugti. Top is an English word used by Pakistani army.

Aug, 25, 2006: News: Four tribal militants were killed on Friday as security forces used helicopter gunships to launch another operation in parts of Kohlu district. Two members of the security forces were also killed while an officer was injured. Reports coming out of Kohlu said the security forces moved in to Karmo Wadh and Tartani areas near Kahan using air support to attack militant hideouts.

To offset military reverses & failures against Pakistan Army; BLA has sought to use propaganda as a means to avert a complete public-relations disaster. Azad Baloch, a spokesman for the Balochistan Liberation Army, told newsmen at the Quetta Press Club on telephone from an unknown place that armed militants were resisting the attacks. He went on to claim that over a dozen security personnel had been killed and many others injured in the area. He also claimed killing FC men in a landmine explosion in Kamo Wadh area. However, official sources did not confirm any casualties suffered by the security forces.

May, 29, 2007: News: Dozens of blasts in Balochistan which disabled the railway links with the rest of the country were claimed by the BLA,.

Bungal Bugti, a former ally of Nawab Akbar Shahbaz Khan Bugti was killed on May 9, 2008 - reportedly in a car-bomb attack. It has been reported that the militants of Balochistan Liberation Army carried out the attack.

References

v t e Baloch nationalism
Regions	Balochistan Balochistan, Pakistan Sistan and Baluchestan Province (Iran) Balochistan, Afghanistan Bilochpura
Political parties	National Awami Party National Party Balochistan National Party (Awami) Balochistan National Party (Mengal) Baloch National Movement Jamhoori Wattan Party Baloch Republican Party Kalat State National Party
Student groups	Baloch Republican Students Organization Baloch Students Organization Baloch Students Organization – Awami National Students Federation
Militant groups	Balochistan Liberation Army (Majeed Brigade) Baloch Nationalist Army Baloch Republican Army United Baloch Army Balochistan Liberation Front Parrari Jaish ul-Adl Jundallah Baluch People's Liberation Front Balochistan Liberation United Front Popular Front for Armed Resistance Baluchi Autonomist Movement Partisans of National Liberation of Afghanistan Lashkar-e-Balochistan Bugti militia
Other groups	Baloch Council of North America Baloch Yakjehti Committee
Key figures	Gul Khan Nasir Abdul Hai Baloch Habib Jalib Baloch Hameed Baloch Ghulam Mohammed Baloch Mir Nooruddin Mengal Allah Nazar Baloch Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo Hasil Bizenjo Akbar Bugti Brahumdagh Bugti Prince Karim Khan Nauroz Khan Abdul Aziz Kurd Yousaf Aziz Magsi Balach Marri Khair Bakhsh Marri Jumma Khan Marri Sher Mohammad Marri Akhtar Mengal Ataullah Mengal Abdolmalek Rigi Dad Shah Mir Hazar Khan Khoso Abdul Malik Baloch Hyrbyair Marri
History	Khanate of Kalat Insurgency in Balochistan Sistan and Baluchestan insurgency 1970s operation Arms discovery in Iraqi Embassy Turbat killings Missing persons Human rights abuses Terrorist incidents Quaid-e-Azam Residency attack Kech District attack Panjgur and Naushki raids University of Karachi bombing
National myths/epics	Mir Chakar Rind Hani and Sheh Mureed

External links

Exclusive report on Baluch separatists, 10 Jun 07, Al Jazeera
WTF- Baloch Liberation; from whom?
Never Mind The Baluch, An article by Ben Hayes of Red Pepper (magazine) that criticises the UK Government for listing the BLA as a terrorist organisation under the Terrorism Act 2000
Chris Zambelis, "Violence and Rebellion in Iranian Balochistan," Jamestown Foundation Terrorism Monitor, Volume 4, Issue 13, June 29, 2006.
http://www.bso-na.org BALOCH SOCIETY OF NORTH AMERICA A Baloch website from USA.
http://www.balochvoice.com A Baloch website transmitting the news about the actions of Baloch Liberation Army.
http://www.radiobalochi.org First ever free Baloch radio, broadcasting from Stockholm., Sweden. News in Balochi and Brahui.
http://www.balochpeople.com Balochistan People's Party's website.
http://www.balochwarna.org Baloch Warna. Warna means youth in Balochi and Brahui.
http://www.balochunity.org Dr. Marri's website from Moscow, Russia.
http://www.thebaluch.com A documentary about Baloch people.
http://fpc.org.uk/events/117 Foreign Policy Center's(FPC/London) report about Balochistan.
http://www.balochpeople.org/eng/2007/jan/opinion1.htm#2 Answer to the FPC report about Balochistan.Scroll down this page(link) for the answer.