ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: Pakistan on Tuesday welcomed the United States administration’s decision to designate the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and its Majeed Brigade faction as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, describing Islamabad’s counterterrorism efforts against militant violence as a bulwark that has helped secure global peace and stability.
The BLA, which also uses the alias of The Majeed Brigade, is the most prominent of separatist groups in Balochistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan and is home to key China-led infrastructure projects, including a port and a gold-copper mine.
The US State Department made the proclamation about the separatist militant outfit a day earlier while citing a list of attacks claimed by its top leaders.
In March, the group claimed responsibility for the hijacking of the Jaffar Express train traveling from Quetta to Peshawar, killing 31 civilians and security personnel and holding hostage over 300 train passengers.
It was also blamed for ramming an explosive-laden vehicle into a school bus in Khuzdar in May, resulting in the deaths of at least eight children along with the bus driver and a conductor.
