Seven labourers from eastern Punjab province were shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Balochistan‘s Panjgur town, according to police reports.
The armed assailants targeted a residence where the workers were staying, firing indiscriminately with automatic weapons, reported news agency Reuters.
One labourer was also injured in the attack, as confirmed by Senior Superintendent of Police in Panjgur, Syed Fazil Shah, who stated, “Seven labourers have been gunned down by unknown armed men …in Khuda-i-Abadan area of Panjgur town.”
As of now, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
This incident follows a series of violent events that took place in Balochistan in August, which saw separatist militants targeting police stations, railway lines, and highways, leading to retaliatory operations by security forces.
The violence resulted in the deaths of more than 70 people, including residents of Punjab who were visiting or working in the province. Their trucks were stopped, or they were forcibly removed from buses.
The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), an ethnic insurgent group fighting against the central government, claimed responsibility for the August attacks. The group accuses the government of unfairly exploiting Balochistan’s gas and mineral resources while the province continues to grapple with widespread poverty.
The BLA demands the expulsion of Chinese interests from the region and seeks independence for Balochistan.
In several ‘coordinated’ attacks on Monday, at least 39 people were killed by militants in the troubled southwestern region of Pakistan. Armed assailants targeted and killed 23 passengers in the Musakhail district of Balochistan province after forcibly removing them from buses, vehicles, and trucks, according to police and news agency AP quoted official sources as saying.Gunmen shot at passengers after checking their identities.