QUETTA: Recovered equipment from killed BLA militants in Balochistan’s recent foiled attacks reveals sophisticated US-origin military hardware, reportedly left behind in Afghanistan and now in terrorist hands.
Images circulating on social media show a slain BLA attacker equipped with:
- FN M16A4 rifle (valued at approx. $1,929)
- LMT/M203 grenade launcher (approx. $2,050)
- Steiner DBBAL-A3 aiming laser (approx. $3,557)
- PVS-7 GA3 night vision goggles (approx. $5,280)
The total estimated cost per terrorist’s kit exceeds $13,000 (roughly 3.5 million PKR). For groups of 100 such attackers, the weaponry value could reach billions of PKR.
This raises serious questions: If BLA claims to represent impoverished locals fighting poverty, how do they access and afford such advanced, expensive military-grade equipment? Reports and security sources have long pointed to US arms abandoned in Afghanistan surfacing in cross-border terrorism, including in Balochistan incidents.
The visuals starkly highlight the disparity between terrorist propaganda of “grassroots struggle” and the reality of heavily equipped, foreign-sourced militancy targeting Pakistan’s security and development.
Security forces continue operations to dismantle such networks and trace the supply chains.
