Gunmen abduct 18 labourers, torch vehicles in Khuzdar

QUETTA: Unidentified gunmen kidnapped 18 labourers after they attacked a construction company’s camp in Khuzdar district of Balochistan.

The attackers also torched several vehicles and machinery at the construction site late on Thursday night.

According to security officials, the attack took place in the Klari area of Naal, around 80 kilometres from Khuzdar.

Dozens of armed men first blocked the main highway to stop traffic before storming the camp and crushing plant of a private construction company working on a key road project linking Khuzdar to Basima in Washuk district.

Levis in-charge Ali Akbar said that the assailants set fire to vehicles and heavy equipment at the site, destroying at least eight vehicles, including transport trucks and machinery.

The attackers then took several labourers hostage and took them away.

“Most of the abducted workers belong to Sindh and had come to Balochistan seeking employment,” Akbar said.

Zulfiqar Ahmed, manager of the construction firm D-Baluch, confirmed that the assailants initially kidnapped 20 labourers but later released two.

“Eighteen are still missing,” he said, adding that the attack has severely disrupted operations and caused panic among employees.

Security forces, including Levis, Frontier Constabulary and the Counter-Terrorism Department, launched an operation with assistance from local tribal elders. However, there has been no trace of the missing workers so far, and no group has claimed responsibility.

Armed Baloch groups, active in the region, have previously targeted road construction projects and development sites, often accusing non-local labourers of being agents of “external interference.”

This is the second major abduction of workers in Balochistan in less than a week.

Earlier, nine labourers were kidnapped from a construction site in Mastung’s Dasht area, and their whereabouts remain unknown — bringing the total number of abducted workers to 27.

The recurring attacks have caused deep anxiety among companies and labourers working in the province.

The Balochistan government condemned the incident and vowed to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Local residents, however, said such attacks are part of an organised attempt to derail the province’s economic progress and urged the government to adopt a comprehensive security strategy.