A brazen assault on a small private coal mine in southwestern Pakistan’s Balochistan province has left at least 20 miners dead and seven injured, according to local police. The attack, occurred in the early hours of Friday, targeted the Junaid Coal company mines in the Duki area, approximately 70 kilometers east of Quetta.
“A group of armed men attacked the mines using heavy weapons, including rockets and grenades,” said Humayun Khan, the police station house officer for Duki. The sheer intensity of the assault has raised concerns about the escalating violence in the region.
Johar Khan Shadizai, a doctor at the district hospital, confirmed receiving 20 bodies and six injured miners. “The victims are mainly from Pashtun-speaking areas of Balochistan,” he added. Notably, three of the deceased and four of the wounded were Afghan nationals.
This latest incident comes on the heels of Wednesday’s deadly shooting in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where suspected militants opened fire on a police vehicle in Tank, killing two officers and wounding two others. Local police official Sher Afzal reported that the attackers fled the scene on a motorcycle.
No group has claimed responsibility for either attack; however, suspicion falls on the outlawed Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The TTP frequently targets security forces and is separate from but allied with the Afghan Taliban, which controls neighboring Afghanistan.
In another incident, tensions between police and supporters of the banned Pashtun Protection Movement (PTM) in the northwestern town of Jamrud resulted in three fatalities. Authorities have barred PTM from holding rallies in the northwest, citing concerns that the demonstrations undermine Pakistan’s interests. PTM denies backing the Pakistani Taliban.
The surge in violence raises questions about Pakistan’s ability to contain militant groups and ensure public safety.