Arrest of a Taliban Commander in Pakistan's Balochistan

A spokesperson for the local government of Balochistan, Pakistan, announced on Wednesday, May 24, that the country has arrested a commander of the Taliban militants, who is considered the 'architect' of three major attacks in the region. According to Reuters, violent clashes with armed Baloch separatist forces and extremist Islamist groups have plagued Balochistan, which is rich in natural resources such as gas, copper, and gold, for years. This comes as part of a major Chinese transportation project estimated to cost $57 billion is set to pass through the area. The Pakistani government accuses its neighboring countries, Afghanistan and India, of strengthening Baloch armed groups and aiding the Pakistani Taliban, a separate but allied group to the Afghan Taliban. Anwarul Haq Kakar, the spokesperson for the local government of Balochistan, told Reuters that the arrested individual, named Saeed Ahmad Badani, was among the planners of three major attacks in 2016 in the region, which resulted in over 180 deaths. He added, 'Saeed Ahmad Badani was involved in all the attacks with a group, but I can describe him as the mastermind of these attacks because he played a decisive role in determining targets and identifying suicide bombers.' The Minister of Interior of Balochistan also stated on Tuesday, May 23, in a press conference that Saeed Ahmad Badani confessed during interrogation that this group received financial assistance from the Indian government and the Afghan security agency. The spokesperson for the local government of Balochistan also mentioned that this Taliban commander was one of the main perpetrators of last year's suicide attack on a hospital in Balochistan, which killed at least 70 people. Anwarul Haq Kakar added, 'Saeed Ahmad Badani was able to encourage and convince the suicide bomber of the attack on the lawyers of Quetta city because they were classmates and friends in a religious school.' Reuters noted that following this attack, a large portion of the small community of lawyers in Balochistan was killed. They had gone to the hospital to visit the head of the Balochistan Bar Association, who had been targeted earlier that day when a suicide bomber detonated himself among them. Meanwhile, a senior commander of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban, who surrendered to the army last month, also claimed that they received assistance from the security agencies of neighboring countries. In contrast, India and Afghanistan have consistently denied these allegations and accused the Pakistani government of orchestrating terrorist attacks on their soil. The spokesperson for the local government of Balochistan stated that due to ongoing investigations, the names of Saeed Ahmad Badani's accomplices will not be disclosed for now. According to him, since joining the Pakistani Taliban in 2014, Saeed Ahmad Badani has been involved in over 20 murders in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan.