GWADAR, BALOCHISTAN: Pakistani military forces have demolished 10 more houses belonging to unarmed civilians in the coastal area of Panwan, in Balochistan’s Gwadar, using heavy machinery.
According to the local source, the incident reportedly took place on July 6, when Pakistani forces used bulldozers to raze the 10 houses, which residents described as an act of brutality.
According to the head of one affected family, the demolished houses belonged to Muhammad Jan Kalmati, Khalid Kalmati, Jaffar Kalmati, Ghulam Nabi Kalmati and Yar Jan Kalmati. The family said Ghulam Nabi Kalmati’s house a seven-room home housing a large extended family was among those destroyed.
Images released by the affected family reportedly show permanent brick structures completely flattened, with household belongings thrown out into the open. The family further said that forces took away a vehicle belonging to them during the demolition operation.
The family said they are in severe distress following the demolitions and do not understand what wrongdoing they are being punished for. They said they are indigenous residents who have lived in the area for generations and that they did not deserve what they described as the devastation brought upon them by government forces. They said they now have no shelter and are living in the open, describing the situation as extremely painful.
It is worth noting that the demolitions came a day after a suicide attack on security forces, with the action being described locally as retaliatory. Similar retaliatory measures have reportedly followed previous militant attacks on forces in the past, which local sources described as attempts by the military to boost troop morale and preserve its public image.
The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) later claimed responsibility for the attack on the Pakistani forces Camp, stating it was a suicide bombing carried out by its “Majeed Brigade” unit. The group identified the attacker as Atta Ullah Baloch, alias Ajmal, saying he drove an explosive-laden Mazda vehicle through military checkpoints and defense lines before detonating it inside the camp.
Following the attack, forces reportedly launched an operation against the local population, in which more than 60 people were forcibly disappeared and five individuals were killed, according to local accounts and families with those killed later identified as people who had previously been reported as forcibly disappeared. Ten houses were demolished using heavy machinery.
Regional sources say an atmosphere of fear prevails in the area, with a large deployment of security forces present and residents confined to their homes.
