Balochistan attacks a plan to ‘ruin’ SCO summit: Interior Minister Naqvi

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Friday said that the recent spate of terrorist attacks in Balochistan was “planned to ruin” a Pakistan-hosted summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) scheduled for October.

Islamabad is set to host the SCO Council of Heads of Government meeting from October 15-16 under its rotating chairmanship.

Islamabad has also sent an invite to India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi despite long-standing tensions over occupied Kashmir and allegations of terrorism.

In the latest flare-up of violence, dozens of militants affiliated with the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) — a separatist outfit — launched numerous attacks on Sunday midnight across Balochistan, killing at least 50, including 14 security men.

Addressing the Senate today, Naqvi said: “We have identified clear links showing that they [terrorists] planned to ruin the SCO conference.

“A lot of people are in anguish [about SCO meeting] so that it should not be organised,” he said, adding that the attacks were a conspiracy against the summit.

The interior minister noted that the Balochistan attacks were devised by not just one body but “terrorist organisations had carried them out together”.

“The incident on the night of August 26 was not a normal one. There was complete planning behind it,” the independent senator emphasised.

Naqvi also informed the Senate that Rs8 billion have been allocated for Balochistan — Rs1bn for each of the eight divisions — while another Rs5bn for the province’s Counterterrorism Department (CTD).

The Rs8bn would be used to “solve minor issues with the support of the local MNAs and MPAs”, the senator explained.

At least 50 people, including 14 security men, lost their lives as militants went on a rampage across the province earlier this week — storming police stations, blowing up railway tracks, and setting fire to almost three dozen vehicles. In response, security forces neutralised 21 militants.

Among those killed were 23 people in Musakhail, mostly labourers from Punjab, who were offloaded from trucks and vans and shot dead after an identity check.

Naqvi vowed his full support for the Balochistan government in combating terrorism when he visited the province on Tuesday.

Following the spate of attacks, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asserted that there was “no room for any weakness”, also making a one-day visit to the province to assess the security situation there. Similarly, President Asif Ali Zardari ordered effective measures to ensure the “complete elimination” of terrorism.

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