At least 22 killed after having IDs checked in Pakistan

Gunmen have killed at least 22 people in south-west Pakistan after forcing them out of their vehicles and checking their identity, officials say.

The attack happened over­night on a highway in Baloch­istan province, where security forces are battling sectarian, ethnic and separatist violence.

The armed men checked identity documents, reportedly singling out those from Punjab to be shot, before setting the vehicles alight, officials alleged.

The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a militant group, has said it was behind the attacks in Musa Khel district.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said that security forces had killed 12 militants in oper­ations after the attacks, but did not give further details.

Over the past 24 hours, the BLA has launched a series of attacks on multiple govern­ment installations – including police stations and security forces’ camps across province.

In Kalat, 11 were killed – five of them security personnel – and six bodies were recovered in another district in Baloch­istan.

According to Najibullah Kakar, a senior local official, around 30 to 40 militants were involved in Musa Khel.

“They stopped 22 vehicles,” he told AFP news agency. “Vehicles traveling to and from Punjab were inspected, and individuals from Punjab were identified and shot.”

The BLA has said it was targeting military personnel travelling in civilian clothes, according to news agency Reuters.

Before the attack, the BLA warned the Baloch public to stay away from the highway, adding that their “fight is against the occupying Pakistani military”.

“We have taken full control of all major highways across Balochistan, blocking them completely,” it added.

Mohsin Naqvi, the interior minister, said the attacks were “a well-thought out plan to cre­ate anarchy in Pakistan”.

—BBC