The United States has designated a Pakistani separatist group as a foreign terrorist organization, the U.S. State Department announced, a move welcomed by Pakistani authorities on Tuesday.
اضافة اعلان
The designation covers the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and its armed faction known as the Majid Brigade, which are held responsible for carrying out deadly attacks in the resource-rich Balochistan region. This announcement coincides with the visit of Pakistan’s Army Chief, General Asim Munir, to the United States.
The decision comes less than two weeks after Washington and Islamabad reached a trade agreement expected to enable American companies to help develop untapped oil reserves in Balochistan and reduce tariffs on Pakistani exports.
According to the U.S. State Department statement:
“We designate the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and its alias Majid Brigade as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and add Majid Brigade as an alias of BLA in its prior designation as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).”
The BLA was first listed as a terrorist organization in 2019 by the U.S. Treasury Department following a series of attacks. The State Department noted the new designation reflects the group’s adoption of additional attacks since then.
The BLA claimed responsibility for suicide bombings near Karachi Airport and in the port city of Gwadar in Balochistan in 2024. It also took responsibility for the March hijacking of the “Jaffer Express” train traveling from Quetta to Peshawar, which resulted in 31 civilian and military deaths and over 300 passengers taken hostage.
The U.S. State Department said: “Today’s action underscores the Trump administration’s commitment to combating terrorism.”
Security analyst Syed Muhammad Ali, based in Islamabad, said the designation followed General Munir’s visit to the U.S. He added that the designation “signals a significant shift in the Trump administration’s policy toward South Asia, highlights the growing role of military diplomacy, strengthens bilateral counterterrorism cooperation, and shows that Washington shares Pakistan’s security concerns about Baloch insurgents.”
Ali also noted the change reflects the U.S. recognition of the importance of stability in Pakistan, especially in the oil- and gas-rich Balochistan province.
No immediate comments were issued by Baloch nationalist or separatist groups. The region has long witnessed armed insurgency, often attributed to groups such as the banned BLA, which the U.S. designated a terrorist organization in 2019. The region also harbors militants linked to the Pakistani Taliban.
Baloch separatists oppose resource extraction by Pakistani and foreign companies and have targeted Pakistani security forces and Chinese nationals working on multibillion-dollar projects related to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
Despite government claims of having suppressed the insurgency, violence continues in Balochistan, where the military announced killing 47 militants in two separate operations in the Zhub area last week and said on Tuesday it killed three more, raising the death toll to 50 since Thursday.
Separately, an explosion occurred on Tuesday at a weapons depot in Nowshera, a district in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, residents said. No immediate statements were issued by police or the military, but authorities were expected to release a statement later.
– Reuters
