Pakistani security forces killed five militants in an intense shootout and freed 23 hostages in the country’s restive southwest, the military said Sunday (September 20, 2026). It was unclear exactly when the abduction took place.

The militants had established an illegal checkpoint near Kalat in Balochistan province overnight into Saturday (September 19, 2026), stopping vehicles to abduct more people for ransom, extort money and seize vehicles, according to a military statement.

The statement described the killed militants as members of “Fitna al-Hindustan,” a term the Pakistani government uses for the outlawed separatist Baloch Liberation Army and other groups operating in Balochistan demanding independence and that it alleges are supported by India. New Delhi has previously denied accusations that it sponsors militancy in Pakistan.

Security forces recovered six trucks, three buses and two cars, along with weapons, ammunition and explosives. No casualties among security forces or abductees were reported. The military said troops were searching the surrounding area for any remaining militants.

The latest operation came just over a week after Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti ruled out negotiations with insurgents and said security operations would continue until militancy was eliminated from the province.

Insurgents often kidnap people for ransom after establishing illegal checkpoints. Last month, they killed 18 police officers after abducting them. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif praised the security forces for the operation, said counterterrorism operations would continue, and vowed to eliminate what he called foreign-sponsored terrorism.

Balochistan has been the scene of a long-running insurgency in southwestern Pakistan with an array of separatist groups, including the BLA, demanding independence from Pakistan’s central government in Islamabad. The groups have staged attacks mainly targeting security forces and people from Punjab who travel to Balochistan for business or employment.

Although Pakistani authorities say they have quelled the insurgency, violence in the province has persisted.

At least 88 terrorists were killed in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province since the launch of a major anti-terror operation on July 5, the government said on Saturday (July 11, 2026).

Nine terrorists were killed in the past 24 hours, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said in a statement.

“The total number of terrorists killed since July 5 in Operation Shaban has reached 88,” he said.

The military, paramilitary Rangers and the Frontier Corps are participating in the ongoing operation, which has involved both ground and air offensives against the militants.

The operation was launched after insurgents carried out several coordinated attacks across Balochistan on July 5.

The deadliest attack targeted a police checkpoint at Mangi Dam in Ziarat district, where militants killed nine policemen before abducting 18 others.

Their bodies were later recovered from the Zarghoon Gar mountainous area near Ziarat, officials said.

Meanwhile, families of the slain policemen continued their sit-in protest at Koila Phatak Chowk on the outskirts of Quetta, demanding justice and improved security for law enforcement personnel.

The protesters on Friday (July 10, 2026) brought eight of the 18 bodies from the Civil Hospital in Quetta to the protest site, saying they would not bury them until the government assured them of justice and better protection for police personnel.

Also on July 5, militants attacked members of the Hanna Urak Valley tribe near Quetta, killing five tribesmen, injuring eight others and abducting 11 people.

The abducted tribesmen were recovered on Friday night (July 10, 2026), following which the protest staged by their relatives near Quetta’s Airport Road was called off.

Balochistan has been facing unrest for about two decades due to allegations by the local ethnic Baloch groups and parties that the federal government was exploiting the mineral wealth of the province.

Dozens of militants attacked a police post overnight in southwestern Pakistan, triggering an intense gun battle that killed nine police officers and wounded some others, officials said Tuesday (July 7, 2026), in the latest escalation of militant violence in the region where insurgents have stepped up attacks on security forces.

The attack took place in a remote area of Ziarat district in Balochistan province, police said, without providing further details. The assailants also abducted eight police officers, but all were later recovered by security forces, said Shahid Rind, a spokesman for the Balochistan government.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the latest attack, though suspicion is likely to fall on the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army (BLA).

The BLA claimed responsibility for a weekend suicide attack on a security post in the coastal town of Jiwani, though the government has neither confirmed nor denied the claim.

Authorities, however, acknowledged that armed men attacked civilians on the outskirts of Quetta city over the weekend. Since then, villagers have staged a sit-in near Quetta, demanding better security and protection against future attacks.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi blamed the latest attack on what he described as Indian-backed militants. He provided no evidence to support the allegation. India has repeatedly denied Pakistan’s accusations that it backs separatists in Balochistan or Pakistani Taliban militants.

His statement also paid tribute to the officers who died and offered condolences to the victims’ families, saying that such attacks “cannot sabotage peace.”

The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, also maintain a strong presence in Balochistan and has carried out attacks there.

Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least populous province, has long been the scene of an insurgency by separatist groups as well as attacks by the Pakistani Taliban. The BLA, which the United States designated a foreign terrorist organisation in 2019, has been behind numerous attacks targeting security forces and civilians across the province in recent years.