On July 23, 2026, BLA terrorists ambushed the vehicle of Sessions Judge Abdul Hakeem Kakar on the Quetta-Mastung Road near the Wali Khan Bypass. Judge Kakar and his police gunman, Zaman Jan Samalani, embraced martyrdom on the spot, while Additional Sessions Judge Tariq Lashari sustained critical injuries. The judges were traveling from Quetta to perform their official duties at the Sessions Court, Mastung.
This was an attack against Pakistan’s judiciary and a direct challenge to the rule of law. By targeting judicial officers, terrorists seek to intimidate the justice system and undermine state authority. The timing of the attack is crucial, barely a month after the Anti-Terrorism Court in Quetta sentenced Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) leaders Mahrang Baloch and Sibghatullah Shahji to life imprisonment for their role in the murder of a Frontier Corps soldier, strongly suggests a strategy of retaliation.
The objective is to raise the cost of enforcing the law and create fear within institutions holding terrorists accountable. This incident provides further evidence of the BYC–BLA continuum, where the BYC functions as a propaganda ecosystem that complements the violent agenda of the proscribed terrorist group BLA by delegitimizing state institutions and generating sympathizing narratives. International advocacy groups that criticized these convictions often overlook this security reality and the violent environment in which Pakistan’s anti-terrorism justice system operates. Due process cannot function if judges, prosecutors, and witnesses are systematically targeted, underscoring the vital need for protected proceedings, faceless courts, and robust witness protection measures.
Following the attack, Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) claimed responsibility within hours. However, official assessments point to a deeper tactical convergence between BLA and ISKP. ISKP’s rapid claim appears designed to provide informational cover, diverting public anger away from the BLA while complicating attribution. Pakistani counter-terrorism agencies have increasingly highlighted instances of operational coordination, shared communication, and propaganda convergence between these ideologically distinct groups to destabilize the region.
The attack on the judiciary comes amidst a broader escalation of violence, establishing Mastung as a primary hotspot for terrorism. Just one day prior, BLA terrorists intercepted a civilian passenger bus in Mastung and opened indiscriminate fire when the driver attempted to escape, killing innocent passengers. Over the past week alone, the district has witnessed targeted assassinations, bus attacks, IED strikes on military convoys, the destruction of public infrastructure at Khad Kucha, and the apprehension of alleged BLA-affiliated female suicide bombers.
The targeting of judges and ordinary civilians demonstrates that the terror campaign is directed against society, governance, and the rule of law itself. This operational convergence between BLA and ISKP, and their shared tactic strengthens the basis for international scrutiny and further action under the UN Security Council’s counter-terrorism sanctions framework.
