In a decisive and meticulously executed covert operation on the night of August 15, Pakistani security forces successfully rescued two abducted civilians from the clutches of the banned militant group Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) in Turbat, Balochistan. The victims, Javed Ali, a resident of Buleda (abducted on July 31, 2024) and Dr. Dad Shah from Tajaban Sangabad (abducted on August 4, 2025), were recovered safely and reunited with their families.
This high-stakes operation was the result of weeks of silent surveillance, intelligence gathering, and local cooperation that culminated in a night maneuver which effectively shattered a longstanding corridor of fear in the region.
The mission began with what most might have overlooked: a faint glimmer of light in the rugged hills northwest of Sangabad, spotted over several nights. To the untrained eye, it was nothing. But intelligence teams cross-referenced it with a growing “pattern of life”—foot traffic, movements of water containers, the arrival of a motorcycle at fixed intervals, and a freshly locked door on a seemingly abandoned mud hut.
With help from local guides, including shepherds and a retired schoolteacher, security forces mapped routes that no satellite could chart. Two assault teams were deployed under the cover of darkness. A subtle distraction was created near the outer perimeter to draw attention away from the actual approach route.
The main team moved through a narrow sand-laced gully, where even a misplaced footstep could betray the mission. The first real sound inside the compound was a whisper:
“We’re from your side. Stay quiet. We’re getting you out.”
Despite the high risk, the team avoided direct combat, demonstrating restraint and discipline. “The goal wasn’t confrontation,” said one official involved, “it was rescuing human lives.”
The captives were moved under cover, navigating unmarked terrain back to safety. Medical checks were conducted immediately. Then came the emotional reunion, raw and unforgettable. “Amma, I’m back… just late, not lost,” whispered a freed son, as his mother wept and kissed the threshold of her home.
The BLA’s modus operandi has long relied on terrorising the very people it falsely claims to represent. Abductions, extortion, and threats are their tools, not resistance, but coercion. Dr. Dad Shah, a village doctor providing essential healthcare in remote communities, was taken to send a message: that no one is safe, and help won’t come.
But this operation sent a stronger message in return, you are not alone.
In recent months, fear had become a strategy: early market closures in Kech and Panjgur, anonymous threats outside schools in Qalat Division, traders receiving calls at midnight. The aim was simple, to engineer silence through fear. But on August 15, that engineered silence was broken.
The successful recovery of Javed Ali and Dr. Dad Shah marks more than a tactical victory, it signals a renewed commitment by security forces to protect innocent lives in regions long held hostage by non-state actors. It also demonstrates the power of local cooperation in challenging violent extremism.
The BLA thrives on isolation, seeking to convince locals they are alone. But this rescue proved the opposite.
In a province too often defined by conflict, August 15 was a night defined by courage, precision, and a quiet but powerful truth:
Violence can be silenced; and hope, when protected, finds its way home.
