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Separatists Kill 13 in Southwestern Pakistan Separatists Kill 13 in Southwestern Pakistan
(about 5 hours later)
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Baluch separatists on Tuesday claimed responsibility for the killing of 13 people who had been abducted a day earlier in a remote area of southwestern Pakistan.ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Baluch separatists on Tuesday claimed responsibility for the killing of 13 people who had been abducted a day earlier in a remote area of southwestern Pakistan.
Gunmen kidnapped at least 26 people on Monday from two passenger buses in Mach, a small town in the Bolan district of Baluchistan Province, which has been riven by a separatist insurgency. Gunmen kidnapped at least 26 people on Monday from two passenger buses in Mach, a small town in the Bolan district of Baluchistan Province, which has been torn by a separatist insurgency.
The Baluchistan Liberation Army, a separatist group, said it had killed the 13, according to local news media reports.The Baluchistan Liberation Army, a separatist group, said it had killed the 13, according to local news media reports.
Also on Tuesday, two army officers and a senior police official were killed in an ambush in Chilas, a mountainous town in northern Pakistan. Taliban militants claimed responsibility for the attack, local news media reported.Also on Tuesday, two army officers and a senior police official were killed in an ambush in Chilas, a mountainous town in northern Pakistan. Taliban militants claimed responsibility for the attack, local news media reported.
The officials — a colonel and a captain in the Pakistani Army and a senior police superintendent — were returning from a security-related meeting when they were attacked by gunmen early Tuesday. The police official, Hilal Khan, was leading the investigation into the June 23 killings of 10 tourists near Pakistan’s second-highest peak, Nanga Parbat.The officials — a colonel and a captain in the Pakistani Army and a senior police superintendent — were returning from a security-related meeting when they were attacked by gunmen early Tuesday. The police official, Hilal Khan, was leading the investigation into the June 23 killings of 10 tourists near Pakistan’s second-highest peak, Nanga Parbat.
In the Baluchistan attack, the two buses were headed from the provincial capital, Quetta, to neighboring Punjab Province when they were ambushed Monday night by dozens of armed men. On Tuesday morning, the bullet-riddled bodies of 13 people were recovered from the mountains by law enforcement officials, according to Kashif Nabi, a senior government official.In the Baluchistan attack, the two buses were headed from the provincial capital, Quetta, to neighboring Punjab Province when they were ambushed Monday night by dozens of armed men. On Tuesday morning, the bullet-riddled bodies of 13 people were recovered from the mountains by law enforcement officials, according to Kashif Nabi, a senior government official.
The victims had been shot at close range, with wounds to the head and chest, he said. At least 10 passengers had been allowed to leave unharmed after their national identification cards showed them to be natives of Baluchistan. Most of those killed were from Punjab Province, and at least three of them had worked for the security forces, officials said. The victims had wounds to the head and chest, he said. At least 10 passengers had been allowed to leave unharmed after their national identification cards showed them to be Baluchistan natives. Most of those killed were from Punjab Province, and at least three of them had worked for the security forces, officials said.
A separatist insurgency has simmered for decades in southwestern Baluchistan, with Baluch nationalists demanding greater autonomy and a bigger share of revenue from the mineral-rich province’s resources.A separatist insurgency has simmered for decades in southwestern Baluchistan, with Baluch nationalists demanding greater autonomy and a bigger share of revenue from the mineral-rich province’s resources.
Muhammad Khan Achakzai, Baluchistan’s governor, urged the separatists to put down their weapons and take part in the political process.Muhammad Khan Achakzai, Baluchistan’s governor, urged the separatists to put down their weapons and take part in the political process.
“We hope to open some kind of a dialogue with them,” Governor Achakzai said in an interview. “Dialogue can, of course, be only in one direction; you have to accept the sovereignty of the state, and within that any differences can be settled.” “We hope to open some kind of a dialogue with them,” Governor Achakzai said in an interview.
“My hope is that militancy is not sustainable for a very long time,” he added. “Nor is it possible any more for small splinters to break states.”
Governor Achakzai said formal dialogue would not be possible unless the separatists put down their weapons and organized as a political party.
“The Doha dialogue between the United States and Kabul broke down because the Taliban came on their own,” he said. “That means you accept them as a separate identity, which Afghanistan refused to.”
He said that in Pakistan the feeling was the same about negotiating with insurgents. “They would have to be within the Constitution and then, within that, if there are any grievances, that can only be solved through the Parliament,” he said, “which means going to the people and getting elected.”