Quetta, Pakistan: a separatist militant group in southwest Pakistan on Sunday (May 4) called for an attack on a van in which five police officers were taken hostage.
Friday, between 30 and 40 armed men blocked a major highway that crosses the province of Balutchistan, intercepting a prison van transported by a police team, said a police official.
“The prisoners were released later, but five police officers were kidnapped,” said a senior police official on Sunday, who was not authorized to speak to the media.
He said that a rescue operation was underway.
Armed men also set fire to government buildings and a bank in the region.
A senior government official, who asked not to be appointed, said two armed men had been killed by the security forces.
Pakistan has been fighting against a separatist insurrection in Balutchistan for decades, where militants target state forces, foreign nationals and non-locals in the southwest province rich in minerals bordering Afghanistan and Iran.
The Balutch Liberation Army (Bla), the most active group in the region, claimed the aggression in the Kalat district.
The Bla has already targeted energy projects receiving foreign funding, especially from China.
In March, the group seized a train, taking hundreds of passengers hostage and killing security forces on leave in a three -day seat.
