 Paramilitary forces clashed with Baloch tribesmen in Bhambhor and Fazil Chail villages of Kohlu on Tuesday as rebel tribesmen attacked rail track and government buildings. Paramilitary forces backed by gunship helicopters launched an offensive on Monday against what the government calls âmiscreantsâ after a series of rocket attacks in Balochistan, including one in Kohlu as President General Pervez Musharraf visited the district.
| Trying to rocket Perv probably wasn't the best idea they ever had... |
A railway line between Sibi and Harnai at Kachaki was blown up early on Tuesday, said FC spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Jamil Hassan. A train was due to pass over the track shortly after the blast, but it was halted in time. Four rockets hit an FC base in Dera Bugti and two fell near a government office in Kohlu district but there were no casualties, he said. Hassan said the operation against âmiscreantsâ was still going on.
He said that paramilitary forces had found a huge cache of weapons including 59 rockets and six rocket launchers in the Sui area, home to Pakistanâs largest gas field, in Dera Bugti. No arrests were made as the area had been abandoned, he said. Reports from Loralai said that a pickup truck had struck a landmine but no casualty was reported. Jamhoori Watan Party leader Shahid Bugti said that paramilitary forces have targeted tribesmen in Dera Bugti and the two sides are standing âeyeball to eyeballâ.
| If you're not real good at forming your sight picture and squeezing off a round or two, I guess eyeball-to-eyeball works. Doesn't allow for a lot of finesse, of course... |
The Balochistan Students Organisation (BSO) claimed on Tuesday that 70 people had been killed and hundreds injured so far due to the firing of gunship helicopters in Kohlu district. Authorities have not given any details of casualties. |