Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) chief Nawab Akbar Bugti and National Party chief Sardar Attaullah Mengal have said the government is planning a military operation in Balochistan. Talking to BBC on Sunday about the situation in Balochistan, Akbar Bugti said personnel from the Sindh and Punjab Rangers and Frontier Corps (FC) had surrounded the province and could advance at any time. He said the number of FC personnel had been increased to 15,000 and that a part of the operation had started on a limited level in Turbat, Nushki and Kalat. He also denied the involvement of the Baloch in bomb blasts.Attaullah Mengal said the government had shut down all political options and was now using force. He said he was ignorant about the Baloch Liberation Army and Baloch Liberation Front, but that he supported them morally as they are working for Balochistan’s cause. He said there would be no talks with Musharraf on the Kalabagh Dam issue and that he would resist its construction.
FC officials said no military operation was being undertaken in the province and that the FC presence in Nushki and Kalat was not for military purposes, but for security surveys.