Operation Shaaban-II Kills Six India-Backed Militants In Balochistan Raid

Balochistan – (Staff Reporter/Web Desk) – Pakistan’s security forces launched Operation Shaaban-II in Balochistan’s Saran Tangi area, striking a group of India-backed militants believed to belong to Fitna al-Hindustan.

The raid, carried out on solid intelligence, resulted in the deaths of six fighters. Nine other people were also taken into custody during the same operation.

Officials say the security team acted swiftly once credible reports pointed to militant movement in the area. The plan came together quickly, and troops moved in before the group could regroup or escape.

After the exchange, teams recovered weapons and ammunition from the site. These items, officials note, back up earlier claims that the group had been planning further attacks in the region.

This action follows a difficult stretch for Pakistan’s security forces. Just a day earlier, six army personnel lost their lives in a separate clash in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Hangu district.

Among those who embraced martyrdom were Captain Abuzar Farooq and Lieutenant Sheraz Babar. Their unit had come under fire while confronting militants tied to Fitna al-Khawarij, another group security officials link to outside support.

Eight militants were killed in that Hangu exchange, according to sources familiar with the operation. The back-to-back clashes highlight just how active the threat has become in both provinces.

Recent data paints a troubling picture. A study by the Centre for Research and Security Studies looked closely at violence trends during the second quarter of 2026.

The findings placed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan at the center of the country’s security concerns. Together, the two provinces accounted for almost every fatality linked to conflict nationwide during that period.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa alone recorded well over sixty percent of these deaths, with a total of 475 lives lost. Balochistan followed with 265 fatalities, making up roughly a third of the national count.

In terms of raw incidents, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa again led the count with 151 reported cases. Balochistan came in second, logging 94 separate incidents during the same three-month stretch.

Analysts trace this rise back to 2021, when the political shift in neighboring Afghanistan changed the regional security landscape. Since then, both provinces have struggled with a steady uptick in militant activity.

Operation Shaaban-II stands as the latest response in an ongoing effort to push back against this trend. Officials say further operations are expected as intelligence continues to guide security planning across the affected regions.

For now, residents in both provinces are watching closely, hoping that actions like this bring some measure of stability back to areas that have seen far too much unrest in recent years.