Commander-In-Chief of BLA Basheer Zeb Baloch with members of special tactical squad

Quetta: Nearly 46 hours after launching ‘Operation Darra-e-Bolan’, Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) this evening announced “conclusion” of its massive and unprecedented military action targeting the occupying Pakistani military and its affiliates in Mach city in Baluchistan, saying “all the desired objectives” had been achieved.

BLA, which claimed to have killed at least 59 Pakistani soldiers during the operation, insisted that its freedom fighters had complete control of Mach city and its adjoining roads of Bolan district of Balochistan for 2 days after overpowering the occupying forces and preventing any reinforcements to reach there.

“The Baloch Liberation Army’s ‘Operation Darra-e-Bolan’ has continued for 2 days with utmost success. BLA has achieved all its desired objectives. Therefore, the Senior Command Council of BLA announces the conclusion of Operation Darra-e-Bolan from 7 PM (Pakistan time) tonight,” its spokesman Jeeyand Baloch said in a statement.

“All units of BLA have been instructed to vacate their positions from Mach city and surrounding areas and report back to their base camps,” he said.

The Operation was launched at around 9 PM (Pakistan time) two days back, with several key installations like Army base, Headquarters of paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC), main police station and railway station in Mach being targeted in a coordinated manner by many BLA fighters.

The BLA claimed to have killed at least 55 military personnel in those attacks, contradicting the Pakistani military which, as usual, confirmed death of only a few soldiers.

Jeeyand Baloch said BLA especially acknowledges the patience, morale, and support of the people of Mach, in this successful operation and that after 7 PM tonight, the people can come out of their homes again.

“Complete details of the operation will be released to the media very soon,” the spokesman concluded.

In a statement 5 hours earlier, the spokesman said the Mach city remained under BLA’s complete control and that an attempt by Pakistan to send reinforcements last night was foiled as the freedom fighters ambushed a military convoy.

“The Baloch Liberation Army’s operation Darra-e-Bolan has been successful so far. Despite forty hours passing, Mach city in Balochistan remains completely under the control of Baloch freedom fighters,” Jeeyand Baloch said in that statement.

He said last night, a military convoy of 18 vehicles from Sibbi, trying to enter Mach, was ambushed by the BLA fighters.

“They were targeted in a fierce attack near the Gokhurt Hotel, close to Mach city, by a group of freedom fighters who had already positioned themselves,” the spokesman said.

The convoy included personnel from FC, police, Levies and several other backup vehicles, he said.

The freedom fighters targeted the enemy convoy from both sides with rockets, machine guns, and other heavy automatic weapons, resulting in the death of at least 4 enemy soldiers and multiple injuries, the spokesman said.

Subsequently, the convoy returned to Sibbi without entering Mach, he said.

According to BLA, the Operation was conducted by its 4 units — Fateh Squad, STOS, Intelligence Wing and Majeed Brigade — in a coordinated manner and for 2 days they controlled the Mach city and all exit and entry routes in adjoining areas.