Gunmen abduct and murder nine travelers in Balochistan.

The Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF), a banned militant group, has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping and subsequent killing of nine passengers from two Punjab-bound coaches in the Sur-Dakai area, which is on the border between Zhob and Loralai districts in Balochistan.

The incident occurred on Thursday night when the armed assailants stopped the coaches, checked the identity cards of the passengers, and abducted 10 individuals. They killed nine of them and let the coaches leave the scene after the abduction. The victims were reportedly targeted because of their Punjab addresses.

The Balochistan government's spokesperson, Shahid Rind, confirmed the incident, stating that the group had carried out attacks in three different locations: Kakat, Mastung, and Sur-Dakai. Zhob Assistant Commissioner Naveed Alam informed that the bodies of the slain passengers were being transported to Rakhni for onward dispatch to their hometowns in Punjab.

Following the incident, security forces suspended traffic on the N-70 highway and launched a search operation to recover any remaining kidnapped passengers and to apprehend the attackers. The BLF spokesman claimed that the nine individuals were killed after the group blocked the highway between Musakhail-Makhtar and Khajuri.

This tragic event underscores the ongoing security challenges faced by the authorities in Balochistan, where such targeted attacks on individuals from various ethnic backgrounds are not uncommon. These incidents continue to fuel concerns over the law and order situation and the safety of travelers in the region.