Two soldiers, eight militants killed in Pakistan Gwadar port attack, army says

In this photograph taken on October 4, 2017, a Pakistani army soldier stands guard at Gwadar port. (AFP/File)

• The attack was claimed by Baloch Liberation Army, a banned separatist outfit, which said it targeted intelligence offices
• The army says militants were trying to enter the Port Authority Colony in Gwadar but were successfully repelled by soldiers

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s security forces killed eight militants and lost two soldiers while thwarting an attack in the southeastern port city of Gwadar on Wednesday, as militants attempted to enter the Port Authority Colony but were successfully repelled by military personnel deployed in the area.
The incident took place after a group of armed militants targeted the Port Authority Complex in the city, prompting the Pakistan Army and police to launch a counteroffensive followed by a security clearance operation.
Banned separatist outfit Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) claimed the responsibility for the attack, saying its fighters had targeted the offices of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI).
“On 20 March 2024, a group of eight terrorists attempted to enter Port Authority Colony in Gwadar, which was successfully thwarted by the security forces personnel,” announced a statement by the military’s media wing, ISPR, after the incident, adding all eight militants were killed in the firefight.
“However, during the intense exchange of fire, two brave soldiers, Sepoy Bahar Khan (age: 35 years, resident of District DG Khan) and Sepoy Imran Ali (age: 28 years, resident of District Khairpur) having fought gallantly, sacrificed their lives and embraced Shahadat [martyrdom],” it added.
The ISPR said a large quantity of arms, ammunition and explosives were also recovered from the dead militants.
Gwadar port is key to the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a road and energy infrastructure project that aims to improve connectivity between the two countries. It is located in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, which has been the scene of a low-lying insurgency for several decades.
Balochistan is Pakistan’s most sparsely populated and poor province by almost all economic indicators. Ethnic Baloch nationalists accuse the state of denying them a share in Balochistan’s mineral resources and now demand independence from the center.
The state rejects these allegations and has vowed to quash any armed rebellion.