The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) carried out a major coordinated attack across multiple regions of Balochistan, killing at least 23 Pakistani military personnel including a senior army officer.

This attack took place on July 22, 2025, with key operations in Mastung, Kalat, Zamuran, Buleda, Quetta, Nushki, Dalbandin, and Panjgur.

The most intense encounter occurred in the Kohak area of Kalat, where Pakistani troops advancing were ambushed and surrounded after three military vehicles were hit, leading to 13 soldiers being killed on the spot.

In Mastung, BLA used improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to target military personnel, killing six including a senior officer identified as Major Ziyad, and injuring several others. The BLA seized weapons at the ambush sites and launched further attacks against reinforcements, forcing Pakistani forces to retreat. The group described these attacks as part of their ongoing armed resistance against what they term as occupying Pakistani state forces.

Parallel to these armed actions, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) released a report on widespread repression in Balochistan, highlighting the issue of enforced disappearances.

According to the report, 752 people were forcibly disappeared in the first half of 2025; among them, 181 were released, 25 died in custody, while 546 remain missing. The highest number of these disappearances occurred in the Makran region, with Frontier Corps personnel considered the main actors responsible for these forced disappearances.

The July 2025 BLA attacks represent a significant escalation in the separatist insurgency, with simultaneous ambushes, IED blasts, and attacks on military vehicles and infrastructure. The insurgents aim to disrupt state control and assert their demands for autonomy and resource control in Balochistan, a resource-rich province in southwestern Pakistan that has long witnessed conflict between separatist groups and state forces.

This violent campaign continues amid allegations of systemic repression by the Pakistani state in Balochistan, marked by enforced disappearances, human rights abuses, and political marginalization of the local Baloch population.

Agencies