Roadside bomb kills three police officers in Balochistan as insurgency escalates

# Roadside bomb kills three police officers in Balochistan as insurgency escalates

*Event date: 2025-04-15*

At least three Balochistan Police officers were killed and 16 others injured when a roadside bomb struck a bus carrying police personnel in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan, according to DW and provincial officials.

The blast hit in Mastung district, about 40 kilometers south of Quetta, when the bus was travelling from Kalat. Provincial spokesperson Shahid Rind said an explosive device detonated near the vehicle, killing three members of the police force and injuring 16 more. He added that two of the wounded were in critical condition and that the most seriously injured were being moved to Quetta for treatment.

No group immediately claimed responsibility. DW reported that the Baloch Liberation Army is the most active armed group in the region carrying out attacks on security forces, but the outlet said there was no claim attached to this incident at the time of reporting. That uncertainty matters in Balochistan, where separatist and militant violence has repeatedly targeted police, soldiers and infrastructure.

Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, condemned the attack and promised to continue what he called the fight against terrorism. Authorities in Balochistan requested an investigation report, a reminder that even routine movement by security personnel can become a target in the province.

Balochistan, which borders Afghanistan and Iran, has faced a decades-long separatist insurgency. Militants have attacked state security forces as well as foreign nationals, and the security climate has deteriorated further in recent weeks. DW noted that several Baloch separatist groups announced a common armed front on March 2, and that violence escalated sharply after the March 11 hijacking of the Jaffar Express passenger train.

That train hijacking, claimed by the BLA, ended after a 48-hour operation in which 33 insurgents were killed. The same report said 26 other people, including soldiers, railway employees and civilians, also died. The bomb attack in Mastung now adds another deadly episode to a series of incidents that have left local authorities trying to contain both the tactical threat and the political fallout.

The latest blast also follows another attack on a police vehicle in Quetta on March 27, underscoring how police formations continue to be singled out. For residents and officials alike, the pattern suggests not only an active insurgency but a widening challenge to the state’s ability to move, protect and supply its own forces in the province.