ISLAMABAD: Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti stated that the root cause of terrorism in Balochistan is not a sense of deprivation.
Speaking during a private TV channel program, he said the number of individuals involved in yesterday’s attacks was at most 200.
He estimated that the total number of active terrorists in the province does not exceed 4,000 to 5,000.
“If this were a genuine political issue, it would have been resolved through dialogue,” he remarked.
The Chief Minister confirmed that security operations in all affected cities have now been fully completed.
He disclosed that attacks took place in 12 cities, and security forces eliminated 145 terrorists during their response operations.
He appealed to all schools of thought to stand united with the state during this time of conflict.
He also urged international media organizations to clearly label terrorists as terrorists.
Regarding missing persons, Bugti said the issue is frequently exploited to justify violence.
He asserted that terrorists enjoy the sympathy of no more than 2–3 percent of the population.
He revealed that last year alone, around 1,000 terrorists were killed, the majority in intelligence-based operations.
The Chief Minister criticized the previous policy of appeasement, stating that it contributed to the rise in terrorism.
He added that intelligence-based operations are currently ongoing in Naushki.
Finally, he noted that the interim Afghan government had promised that Afghan soil would not be used for terrorism against Pakistan.
