Unidentified gunmen abduct 18 construction workers in Pak’s Balochistan

Karachi, Oct 24 (PTI) Unidentified gunmen on Friday abducted 18 workers from a construction company’s site in the Khuzdar district of the restive Balochistan province, security officials said.  The armed men also set several vehicles on fire before taking away the 18 labourers at gunpoint.

The armed men first overpowered the site guards and then took the workers to an undisclosed location, officials said.  In a second such incident in the last five days, labourers mostly belonging to other provinces have been kidnapped at gunpoint.  Earlier, seven labourers were abducted from a site while constructing a security check post in the Dasht Mastung district. Their whereabouts are still not known.

With the latest incident the security has been increased at all construction sites in the province as police are still investigating the motive behind these abductions.

Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by area, has for years witnessed attacks on security personnel and labourers from other provinces by separatist groups who contend that Islamabad's policies and large-scale projects like the CPEC have benefited external and federal interests while failing to provide equitable benefits to the local population. PTI CORR RD RD RD