Seven soldiers were martyred in a blast from an improvised explosive device planted by “Indian proxy” terrorists in Balochistan’s Kacchi district, the military’s media wing said on Tuesday.

A press release from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said: “On May 6, 2025, terrorists belonging to Indian proxy, so-called ‘Baloch Liberation Army’, targeted security forces’ vehicle with an improvised explosive device in general area Mach.”

It said the following seven soldiers were subsequently martyred in the attack: Subedar Umar Farooq, 42, resident of Karachi; Naik Asif Khan, 28, resident of Karak district; Naik Mashkoor Ali, 28, resident of Orakzai district; Sepoy Tariq Nawaz, 26, resident of Lakki Marwat district; Sepoy Wajid Ahmed Faiz, 28, resident of Bagh district; Sepoy Muhammad Asim, 22, resident of Karak district and Sepoy Muhammad Kashif Khan, 28, resident of Kohat district.

“Nefarious designs of India and its proxies operating on Pakistani soil will be defeated by the valiant security forces, LEAs (law enforcement agencies) and the brave nation of Pakistan,” the ISPR said.

It added that sanitisation of the area was being carried out to eliminate any terrorists present in the area and the perpetrators of the “heinous and cowardly act” would be brought to justice.

“Security forces of Pakistan, in step with the nation, remain determined to thwart attempts at sabotaging peace, stability and progress of Balochistan, and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve.”

Two Pakistan Coast Guards personnel were injured on Monday when a remote-controlled bomb targeted their patrol vehicle in the Jiwani area, while a Levies official escaped unharmed when his private vehicle was destroyed by a separate roadside bomb in Pishin district.

Last week, ISPR Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry accused India of activating its “assets” to inte­nsify terrorist attacks in Pakistan, presenting “irr­e­futable evidence” of Ind­ian state-sponsored terrorism, directed by the Ind­ian military personnel.

“Post-Pahalgam, because of the designs of terrorism that they have, they tasked all their assets, the terrorists operating in Balochistan, and we have credible intelligence for that, the Fitna-al-Khawarij and the independent terrorist cells … to increase their activity,” he had said, using the state-designated term for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities over the past year, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, after the TTP ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022.

Militant violence and security operations intensified in March, with the number of militant attacks surpassing 100 for the first time since November 2014, according to a report by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies.

Pakistan ranked second in the Global Terrorism Index 2025, with the number of deaths in terrorist attacks rising by 45 per cent over the past year to 1,081.