July 24, 2008	Thursday	Rajab 20, 1429

QUETTA, July 23: The Baloch Republican Party has given a call for a general strike in Balochistan on Friday in protest against what he called the killing of 50 arrested tribesmen and torching of around 270 houses by security personnel during an operation in Dera Bugti over the past five days.

Addressing a news conference here on Wednesday, BRP secretary-general Dr Bashir Azeem criticised the provincial government for keeping quiet about the “brutality”. He urged Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Raisani and other ministers to quit the government and warned that otherwise they would be considered collaborators.

Dr Bashir appealed to the international community to take notice of the situation in Balochistan.

He claimed that security forces had arrested around 500 tribesmen in Dera Bugti and killed 50 of them after branding them militants.

He said the BRP would not ask the government to stop the military operation, but would vigorously fight back the forces.