Baloch women slam Pakistan for aerial attacks on civilians in Balochistan

Quetta, Sep 19 (IANS) The Baloch Women's Forum (BWF) on Friday condemned the Pakistani forces for carrying out indiscriminate aerial bombardment on civilians in the Zehri region of Balochistan, calling it a continuation of Pakistan’s relentless barbarity on the Baloch people.

The remarks came after deadly air and drone strikes by the Pakistani military targetted residential homes in the Terasani (Qazib) area of Zehri in Khuzdar district late Wednesday night, killing three people, including two women, and injuring five others, among them a four-year-old child.

“We have often seen drones and aerial attacks as a means of border war, but in Balochistan, they are frequently used against the indigenous masses. There have been several losses of lives due to such attacks in various regions of Balochistan, including Tump, Panjgur and the Marri and Bugti areas, while Khuzdar’s Zehri takes up the headlines now, which, we fear, will expand to further aerial attacks on the innocent Baloch populace,” read a statement issued by the BWF.

“Our stance has been clear from day one that we do not endorse any act which includes the snatching of innocent lives in Balochistan and resist such cowardly acts in any forum and against anyone involved – no matter if they are a state department,” it added.

Slamming Pakistan’s law enforcement departments, the BWF stated that showing pride in such attacks while terming the deceased persons as “insurgents” is nothing more than taking a cover to hide their anti-humanitarian and illegal act of causing the death of civilians.

No law, the group stressed, whether on the state level or international, supports the attack on common civilians in Balochistan, and such actions should be degraded in every forum and by everyone.

“We condemn the Zehri aerial attack involving the law-enforcing departments and demand immediate accountability, including probe and court trials of the personnel involved in the incident and compensation to the families of both the deceased and injured ones,” the forum stated.

Asserting that Balochistan has already been a "grave of human rights", the BWF demanded an immediate end to the human rights violations and urged for practical steps in resolving the genuine concerns of the Baloch residents on a priority basis.

--IANS

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