Pakistan military says 42 killed in fighter attacks in Balochistan

Military spokesman warns fighters ‘we will chase you, we will hurt you’ amid the spate of deadly ambushes.Rebel fighters in southwestern Pakistan have killed 18 police officers and 11 soldiers in separate attacks, the military has said.The latest attacks, which unfolded in the province of Balochistan, have brought the death toll since Monday to 42 people, military spokesperson Lieutenant General Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry told a televised news conference Wednesday.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Pakistan says it intercepted four drones fired from Afghanistanlist 2 of 4After Afghanistan fires drones into Pakistan, what’s next?list 3 of 4In South Asia, America has stopped asking India for permissionlist 4 of 4At least nine police officers killed in southwestern Pakistan attackend of listChaudhry said the casualties included four civilians, while security forces also killed 54 fighters across several operations.“We will chase you, we will hurt you,” Chaudhry said, claiming that “many Afghans” were behind the attacks.“We will take on each and every terrorist, their facilitators, those who harbour them, those who nourish them and those who provide them bases, wherever they are located,” he added.The 18 slain police officers were abducted Monday, when dozens of fighters descended upon a post guarding the large Mangi dam project in Balochistan’s Ziarat district. Nine other officers were killed in the attack.Then, on Wednesday, fighters ambushed a vehicle as it travelled on a Balochistan highway, killing the 11 soldiers, Chaudhry said.Escalating attacksPakistan has been battling a separatist uprising for years in Balochistan, which is the country’s largest, but least populated, province bordering Afghanistan and Iran.Fighters from the banned Pakistan-Taliban" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="1623" data-entity-type="organization">Pakistan Taliban (TTP) – which is allied with Afghanistan’s Taliban – and the banned Balochistan-liberation-army" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="133087" data-entity-type="organization">Balochistan Liberation Army have targeted state forces, foreign investment projects and infrastructure in the mineral-laden region. At least five separatist uprisings have been recorded since Pakistani independence in 1947.