Attack on Islamabad foiled as security forces arrest female suicide bomber, says CM Bugti

Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti on Monday announced that security forces have arrested a female suicide bomber in an intelligence-based operation (IBO), saying the girl was preparing for a suicide attack in Islamabad.

Speaking at a press conference in Quetta, CM Bugti said the minor was subjected to “psychological manipulation, coercion and threats” by terrorist elements. He said law enforcers rescued her through an IBO from the custody of the banned terrorist group Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which was linked to Fitna al-Hindustan.

“This timely operation not only saved the girl’s life but also averted a major terrorist incident in the capital,” he said.

The chief minister stressed that the case demonstrated how extremist networks exploited vulnerable youth, especially women, using intimidation and emotional pressure, adding that she had now been reunited with her father, a truck driver from a poor family, safely.

He condemned the practice as a violation of both humanity and Baloch traditions, stressing that such acts did not represent the identity of the Baloch people.

CM Bugti reiterated that citizens of the province were peaceful and should not be associated with extremist activities, adding that the girl was manipulated by individuals linked to a terrorist organization and her family was threatened during the ordeal.

The chief minister further said that “certain proxy networks and social media actors linked to India” were amplifying extremist narratives as part of a coordinated propaganda campaign.

CM Bugti praised law enforcement’s prompt and professional response, calling the rescue a “classic example of effective intelligence work.”

He promised that operations against terrorist networks would continue at all levels and stressed that the exploitation of women and children would never be tolerated.

Providing details of operations against terrorists over the past few months, CM Bugti said security forces had intensified their counter-terrorism operations in Balochistan, neutralizing 216 terrorists and foiling several plots.

Advisor to CM on Sports and Culture Meena Majid, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Hamza Shafqaat and Assistant to CM on Political and Media Affairs Shahid Rind were also present in the briefing.

In March, security forces managed to arrest another suicide bomber in Khuzdar. CM Bugti said the arrested woman made critical revelations during interrogation. “She confessed that she had been recruited by a terrorist commander, Qazi Ibrahim, who had trained her to carry out a suicide attack, and then connected to a network through an individual named Diljan,” he added.

The arrested suspect said she was radicalized and groomed for a suicide mission by terrorists. She revealed that she was not only tasked with leading an attack, but also recruiting other young women for similar missions. She urged women to avoid participating in such activities.

Initial investigations suggest that the suspect had links to members of banned militant organizations and individuals involved in extremist networks. Officials said she was in contact with facilitators for additional training and planning before her arrest.

The BLA is increasingly involving women in its terrorist activities, including using them as suicide bombers against civilians and security forces. Reports suggest that the militant group targets vulnerable women, indoctrinating them for attacks aimed at disrupting peace and stability in Pakistan.

In recent years, security forces have arrested several female suicide bombers who were blackmailed or forced to become terrorists. Many of these women were manipulated or exploited by the BLA and forced to carry out suicide attacks.

In February, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Counter Terrorism Department foiled a major terror plot in Dera Ismail Khan, arresting a red-handed female suicide bomber from Sheikh Yousaf Khema Basti in a timely operation carried out based on confirmed intelligence.

In 2024, a Baloch woman, arrested in Turbat for planning a suicide attack, revealed that terrorists had blackmailed and manipulated Baloch women into carrying out such acts.