Eight workers from Pakistan’s Punjab province were killed by Baloch militants in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan province. The incident took place in a village in Meharistan district, according to reports on Sunday.
The workers, who were from Bahawalpur in southern Punjab, were employed at a car repair shop in Iran. They were working on tasks like denting, polishing, painting, and repairing cars. The attack occurred on Saturday night, when armed men entered the workshop, tied up the workers, and opened fire on them. After the shooting, the attackers fled the scene.
Iranian authorities confirmed the killings and said they were investigating the incident. The Balochistan National Army (BNA), a banned militant group, took responsibility for the attack.
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This was not the first attack of this kind in the region. Last year, in January, armed men killed nine Pakistani workers in Saravan city, also in Sistan-Baluchestan. Like the victims in this attack, those workers were from Pakistan and working in Iran as motor mechanics.
The Baloch people in both Pakistan and Iran have long struggled for more autonomy and better treatment. The violence is part of a decades-long conflict in Balochistan, a region rich in resources but often neglected by the governments of Pakistan and Iran.
Last year, tensions between Iran and Pakistan also escalated, with both countries attacking each other’s territories, citing militant groups operating in the region. This violence adds to the ongoing unrest in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, where locals, especially Balochs, feel that their resources are being exploited without proper development for the region.
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The killing of these eight Pakistani workers highlights the deepening conflict in the Balochistan region, with both sides blaming each other for the region’s struggles.
