QUETTA: A teenage boy was killed and eight others injured when unidentified attackers laun­ched a coordinated attack on government offices, banks and security forces’ vehicles in Mastung town, about 60 kilometres southeast of Quetta, on Tuesday.

In an ensuing operation, security forces killed two terrorists and injured three others.

Sources said the militants stormed the town around 11am and attacked the tehsil office, took staff hostage, ransacked official records and furniture and set the building ablaze.

The attackers also targeted the Levies Lines, torching three vehicles, and later attacked three banks in the town, setting fire to the National Bank as well as a private bank. Rockets were fired at the security forces during the assault.

Security personnel, inclu­ding the Frontier Corps (FC), Levies, police, the Anti-Terrorism Force (ATF) and the Cou­nter Te­rrorism Department (CTD), quickly reached the site and launched an operation. “Two terrorists were killed and three others injured in an intense exchange of fire,” said Shahid Rind, spokesperson for the Balochistan government.

Senior police officer Younis Magsi also confirmed the killing of two militants, adding that the remaining attackers later escaped from Mastung.

The teenage victim, identified as Muhammad Shoaib Magsi, hailed from Jhal Magsi and was visiting Mastung with his family to spend the summer. His body, along with the eight injured was shifted to Nawab Ghous Bakhsh |Memorial Hospital, the police officer told Dawn.

Mastung Deputy

Commissioner Athar Abbas Raja confirmed that the attack aimed to take control of the town and said the militants’ plan to hold hostages had been foiled. “A coordinated clearance operation is underway,” he said.

Local journalist Munir Ahmed told Dawn that gunfire and explosions were heard in Mastung, prompting panic and forcing the immediate closure of markets.

In a statement, Mr Rind said: “Fitna-i-Hindustan terrorists attacked the Tehsil office, other government buildings and a bank. A 16-year-old boy was martyred and seven others injured by the terrorists’ firing.”

He added that the operation was carried out based on intelligence, and efforts were underway to trace the attackers’ facilitators. “The immediate response by the security forces was effective in preventing further loss of lives,” he said.

Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi strongly condemned the attack, paying tribute to the FC, CTD and Levies personnel for their swift and effective response.

The professional and courageous action of security forces prevented a greater tragedy, he said, expressing solidarity with the family of the slain teenager and praying for the recovery of the injured.

Uptick in terrorism

Militants in Balochistan, previously engaged in a low-level insurgency, have recently intensified their attacks. The banned Balochistan Liberation Army emerged as a key perpetrator of terrorist violence in Pakistan in 2024.

However, these groups were unable to significantly escalate their activities in the country in June, according to data released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies, which recorded 85 attacks in May compared to 81 in April, according to a Dawn.com report.

In one of the recent major attacks, a school bus in Balochistan’s Khuzdar was targeted on May 21, leaving eight children among 10 dead.

In April, three policemen were martyred and at least 16 others were injured as a blast targeted a vehicle of the Balochistan Constabulary on Mastung’s Dasht Road.

Last month, security forces killed two “Indian sponsored terrorists” in Balochistan’s Duki district and another two in Kachhi.

On June 18, a man and a woman were shot dead when unknown gunmen opened fire at them in the Surgaz area, a locality on the outskirts of Mastung town. Another woman and a child sitting in the car were injured in the firing.

Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities, especially in KP and Balochistan, after the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022.

The country 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.

Published in Dawn, July 2nd, 2025