Terrorist Attack on Train in Balochistan: The Role of BLA
How Did the BLA’s Leadership Shift from Tribal Chiefs to the Middle Class?
BBC Special Report
Quetta ( Web News )
The banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has hijacked a train traveling from Quetta to Peshawar in the Dera Bolan area of Balochistan. Security sources confirmed the attack, stating that terrorists ambushed the train at Dhadar, stopped it inside a tunnel, and took the passengers hostage.
According to a report by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the BLA claimed in a statement that all the hostages were government employees, particularly from security forces and law enforcement agencies.
The BLA has been active in Balochistan for over a decade, but its attacks, particularly by its subsidiary group, Majeed Brigade, have intensified in recent years. Recently, Pakistan demanded a ban on Majeed Brigade at the United Nations Security Council. The BLA is already a designated terrorist organization by both Pakistan and the United States.
Origins of the Baloch Insurgency
The insurgency in Balochistan began with its annexation into Pakistan when the ruler of the State of Kalat, Prince Karim, initiated armed resistance. The 1960s also saw a minor insurgency when Nawab Nauroz Khan and his sons were arrested. According to author Selig Harrison, General Sherof Marri, a follower of Karl Marx’s ideology, led the movement.
Organized militant activities in Balochistan started in the 1970s when the first elected government of Balochistan was dissolved. At the time, Sardar Attaullah Mengal was the Chief Minister, and Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo was the Governor—both from the National Awami Party. The key leaders of the separatist movement included Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri and General Sherof Marri.
The first BLA insurgency emerged during this period. After just ten months in office, the Balochistan Assembly and government were dismissed, and key nationalist leaders, including Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, Attaullah Mengal, and Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri, were arrested and charged with conspiring against the state in the famous Hyderabad Conspiracy Case.
According to Dr. Rizwan Zaib, a professor of Political Science and International Relations at Iqra International University, six weeks after the government’s dismissal, attacks on government forces and convoys began. The first major attack occurred on May 18, 1973, at Tandoori, where Dir Scouts were targeted. By July 1974, insurgents controlled several roads, cutting off contact with the rest of the country and even disrupting train services.
Journalist Shehzada Zulfiqar notes that the Mengals dominated central Balochistan, from Kalat and Khuzdar to Lasbela. A major turning point occurred on September 3, 1974, when the Pakistan Air Force bombed Chamalang, killing 125 insurgents and arresting around 900 people.
After Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s government was overthrown and General Zia-ul-Haq seized power, peace talks led to the end of the armed resistance. Khair Bakhsh Marri and his followers moved to Afghanistan, where he ran a study circle called Haq Tawar, which later influenced many young militants, including Ustad Aslam Baloch, who later became a key commander of the BLA.
Modern-Day BLA and Its Leadership Shift
Armed attacks resumed in 2000, escalating in December 2005 when rockets were fired at General Pervez Musharraf’s convoy in Kohlu, leading to military operations in the region. Kohlu was the hometown of Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri, and in the aftermath, his son Balach Marri emerged as a prominent BLA leader.
In 2006, the Pakistan government officially banned the BLA, and in 2007, Balach Marri was reportedly killed in Afghanistan. After his death, Pakistani authorities identified his brother Hyrbyair Marri, based in the UK, as the new leader. However, Hyrbyair denied these claims, and conflicts within the Marri family led to the BLA’s leadership shifting from tribal aristocrats to middle-class militants.
Among these young militants, Ustad Aslam Baloch played a leading role in modernizing the Majeed Brigade’s suicide missions. He expanded Baloch militancy from the mountains into cities, particularly Karachi. The BLA’s first suicide attack was carried out by Aslam Baloch’s own son in 2018 in Dalbandin, targeting a Chinese company.
After the launch of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in 2013, the BLA began targeting Chinese interests. The Majeed Brigade carried out suicide attacks on the Chinese consulate in Karachi (2018), the Pearl Continental Hotel in Gwadar (2019), the Pakistan Stock Exchange in Karachi (2020), and Karachi University (2022), where female bomber Shari Baloch targeted Chinese instructors at the Confucius Institute.
Following Ustad Aslam Baloch’s assassination in Kandahar in 2018, Bashir Zeb took over the BLA’s leadership. Under him, suicide missions increased, including the 2023 attack by Samiya Qalandrani on an FC vehicle in Turbat and 2024’s attack by Mahil Baloch on an FC camp in Bela.
The Formation of the Baloch Militant Alliance: BRAS
The BLA became part of Baloch Raaji Aajoi Sangar (BRAS), an alliance of Baloch separatist groups, officially announced on November 10, 2018. Initially, it included:
- Baloch Liberation Army (BLA)
- Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF)
- Baloch Republican Guards (BRG)
On May 21, 2019, the Baloch Republican Army (BRA) also joined BRAS. Later, when BRA merged with United Baloch Army (Mureed faction) to form the Baloch National Army (BNA), it too joined BRAS. However, BNA was later dissolved, and its fighters were absorbed into different BRAS factions.
Recently, BRAS announced the formation of a joint organization, with BLA and BLF playing central roles.
Weapons and Tactical Capabilities
According to researcher Abdul Basit, who wrote for the Jamestown Foundation, the Majeed Brigade possesses high-grade weapons, including:
- Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs)
- Anti-personnel and anti-tank mines
- Hand grenades
- Rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs)
- Automatic weapons like M4 rifles
- BM-12, MM-12 rocket systems
- Advanced explosives like C4 for suicide vests
The Majeed Brigade has become the BLA’s most lethal wing, but membership in the BLA is not a requirement for joining it.