Key Takeaways
- Five workers from Punjab were gunned down in Mashkail town of Balochistan's Washuk district.
- The incident occurred during ongoing counterterrorism operations, with security forces eliminating 109 terrorists since July 5.
- Police are searching for the attackers and have shifted the bodies to a government health facility.
Armed men riding motorcycles opened fire on shops where five workers from Punjab were working in Mashkail town, Balochistan’s Washuk district, on Sunday. Deputy Commissioner Abdul Majeed Sarparah confirmed the incident and stated that the labourers suffered multiple bullet injuries and died at the scene.
The attack took place close to the Pakistan-Iran border area amid ongoing Operation Shaban and other counterterrorism operations in the province. Since July 5, security forces have eliminated 109 terrorists as part of these operations.
Local police officials informed that after receiving information about the incident, they rushed to the site and shifted the bodies to a government health facility in Mashkail for further legal formalities. Arrangements will be made to dispatch the workers' bodies back to their native towns in Punjab.
This latest attack is part of a series of incidents targeting individuals from Punjab in recent years. In March 2023, four labourers were shot dead in Balochistan’s Kalat district. In February 2025, seven people travelling to Punjab were killed after being offloaded from a passenger bus in Barkhan district.
In May 2024, seven barbers from Punjab were shot dead near Gwadar, while August saw 23 travellers offloaded from trucks and buses and shot in the Musakhail district. In September 2024, terrorists armed with automatic weapons stormed an under-construction house in Khuda-i-Abadan area of Panjgur town and killed seven labourers.
The security forces, along with law enforcement agencies, have launched a search operation to trace the elements involved in the attack. The incident highlights ongoing tensions between different regions within Pakistan and the challenges faced by authorities in ensuring safety for workers from Punjab.
