Baloch activists and various human rights organizations on Thursday vehemently rejected statements from Pakistan's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) concerning recent airstrikes in Balochistan's Surab region. These groups labelled the official Pakistani narrative as 'false and fabricated,' insisting that over 30 civilians, including women and children, died in the early Wednesday bombardment.
The criticism emerged after the Director General of ISPR, the Pakistani military's media wing, downplayed the Surab incident. The ISPR attributed the extensive casualties and damage to the premature detonation of a Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device (VBIED) allegedly linked to a militant group. However, eyewitness accounts and human rights defenders present a starkly different picture, alleging that the Pakistani Air Force indiscriminately targeted residential areas in Surab's Gidar region, causing significant property damage and civilian fatalities.
Mir Yar Baloch, a prominent human rights defender, took to X to denounce the ISPR's remarks. He asserted that the ISPR has a history of issuing misleading statements regarding military operations. Baloch described the Surab incident as a 'planned act of collective punishment,' with local residents reportedly witnessing the Pakistan Air Force deliberately targeting civilians under cover of darkness, devastating an entire village.
Adding to the condemnation, the Baloch Voice for Justice (BVJ) accused the DGISPR of 'extreme exaggeration' and attempting to construct a 'so-called narrative' to conceal ongoing 'war crimes' in Balochistan. The rights body emphasized that ground realities cannot be hidden by distorting facts and called for an immediate, transparent, and independent investigation. The BVJ demanded access for independent observers and journalists to the affected area, preservation of evidence, and accountability for those responsible for civilian deaths.
Separately, the Baloch Students Organisation (BSO)-Azad also dismissed the official Pakistani narrative, highlighting how state-controlled media often absorbs 'fabricated and polished narratives' from the ISPR. The BSO-Azad demanded accountability from the Pakistani state for the destruction of homes and the massacre of women, children, and elderly people, urging international communities to address the 'ongoing Genocide in Balochistan.'
In a show of solidarity and protest against the civilian bombings, a widespread shutter-down and wheel-jam strike was observed across several districts in Balochistan on Thursday. The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) had called for the strike, emphasizing that the loss of civilian lives and destruction in Surab demand urgent attention from human rights organizations and the international community.
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📰 Source: Mangalorean News