In Mashkel town of Balochistan’s Washuk district, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) carried out yet another cold-blooded terrorist attack. Five Innocent civilians, including barbers and labourers from Punjab, were deliberately targeted and murdered. These ordinary working men had travelled far from home to serve local communities, support their families back home, and contribute honestly to the province’s daily life. They were not combatants at all. They were guests in Balochistan, seeking only a lawful livelihood. By killing them, the BLA has not only committed a heinous crime but has also brazenly violated one of the most sacred values of hospitality in Baloch culture.
This targeting of Punjabi civilians in Balochistan is not a new incident. It follows a grim and well-documented pattern. As far back as April 2009, a figure linked to the BLA publicly urged Baloch people to kill non-Baloch residents of the province. In 2010, the group murdered six Punjabi labourers as they returned home from work near Quetta. The campaign of ethnic violence has continued unabated. In March 2025, four Punjabi labourers were shot dead in Kalat district. In May 2024, seven Punjabi barbers were killed near Gwadar. In August 2024, armed men stopped buses and trucks in Musakhel district, checked identity documents, and killed at least 23 confirmed Punjabi migrant workers.
The purpose behind these attacks is clear to inflame ethnic divisions between Punjab and Balochistan, spread terror among ordinary citizens, and erode the national cohesion that binds Pakistan together. By deliberately selecting victims based on their provincial and ethnic origin, the terrorists seek to turn communities against one another and fracture the very idea of a united Pakistan. This was never merely a crime against a handful of individuals. It was a calculated assault on the foundational principle of One Pakistan. As Balochistan CM Sarfraz Bugti condemned the attack, terming it an assault on national unity
I strongly condemn in the strongest possible terms the brutal killing of unarmed and innocent workers in Mashkel. This was not Baloch targeting Punjabis; it was terrorists targeting Pakistanis. This attack is an assault on Pakistan’s unity and national solidarity.
Beyond its political motives, the killing of unarmed civilians constitutes a grave violation of human rights. Any individual or organization that genuinely believes in human rights has a moral duty to condemn such atrocities without hesitation. Yet this tragedy once again exposes the glaring hypocrisy and selective outrage of certain self-proclaimed human rights groups, such as the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) and the Human Rights Council of Balochistan (HRCB). These organizations have been quick to stage loud protests over cases of suicide bomber under the guise of missing persons. Yet they maintain a conspicuous silence when innocent Punjabi labourers and barbers are systematically massacred. This glaring inconsistency severely undermines their credibility and raises serious questions about their true agenda.
The consequences of such terrorism extend far beyond the immediate victims. Each attack brings profound grief to families across Punjab, while inflicting economic hardship, instability, and fear on the people of Balochistan itself. Those who choose to remain silent are not neutral. Their inaction makes them complicit in perpetuating the cycle of violence.
The massacre in Mashkel is not an isolated tragedy. It forms part of a long, deliberate campaign to sow ethnic hatred and dismantle Pakistan’s national unity, a campaign that has left a trail of innocent blood from Quetta to Gwadar, Musakhel to Washuk. Every act of silence by those who claim to champion human rights and every justification made for these terrorists is itself a betrayal of the very principles they profess to defend.
Pakistan’s greatest strength has always been the unity of its provinces and the shared destiny of its people. In the face of such barbarity, this unity must be defended with unwavering resolve through the unequivocal condemnation of terrorism, consistent moral clarity, and a firm refusal to let extremists divide what generations of Pakistanis have built together through sacrifice and resilience. The zero-tolerance policy of Pakistan against terrorism will continue until the last terrorist is eliminated.
