January 15, 2006	Sunday	Zilhaj 14, 1426

QUETTA, Jan 14: Paramilitary forces on Saturday launched another operation in the Marri area using helicopter gunships and heavy weapons while unidentified people fired rockets at a Frontier Corps camp in Kohlu, reports said.

Official sources said that security forces were taking action against outlaws’ hideouts and camps in different parts of the Kohlu and Dera Bugti districts.

“FC troops have targeted outlaws’ camps at Bhambhoor top in Marri area,” sources said and added that helicopter gunships were taking part in the action.

However, nationalist leader Mir Balach Khan Marri, a member of the Balochistan Assembly, claimed that security forces had been lobbing mortars and rockets at the small township of Kahan for the last two days in which 25 people, mostly women and children, had been killed and several others injured.

“Kahan town witnessed heavy shelling and mortar attacks the whole day on Saturday. My house was also targeted and has been badly damaged,” he told Dawn over telephone from the troubled area.

He said the residents of Kahan and other areas had left their houses and moved to safe places.

“Entire town is empty but mortar and rocket lobbing continues from the FC Qila,” Mir Balach said and added that over 2,000 rockets and mortars had been fired by security forces.

An FC spokesman denied bombardment and use of fighters in the Marri area and said that security forces had not targeted Kahan, Sanglan and Kach towns.

“All claims regarding bombing townships is baseless and wrong,” he said and added that the FC troops were taking action only against outlaws’ camps and their hideouts.

He also denied casualties in the Kahan township.

“Paramilitary forces were taking action against camps set up in the mountains,” the spokesman said and added that ‘saboteurs had fired eight rockets at the FC base camps in Kohlu and Babar Tak area of the Harnai tehsil on Saturday morning. Four rockets landed and exploded near the FC camp in Kohlu town, he said.