Top elected official in Pakistan's Balochistan rules out talks with insurgents

The top official in Pakistan's Balochistan province has ruled out negotiations with insurgentsByMUNIR AHMED Associated PressSeptember 12, 2026, 10:02 AMISLAMABAD -- The top elected official in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan on Saturday ruled out negotiations with insurgents, indicating that the government will continue operations in which hundreds of militants have been killed in recent months.Balochistan has long faced a separatist insurgency by ethnic Baloch groups who regularly target security forces and civilians working on development projects. While Pakistan’s government says it has quelled the insurgency, violence has persisted. Sarfraz Bugti, the chief minister of Balochistan, said in a statement that the “fight against terrorism would continue until the last terrorist is eliminated” in Balochistan. “There will be no negotiations with terrorists, those who have taken up arms against Pakistan and those raising slogans for the country’s disintegration.” His remarks came as attacks by the Baloch Liberation Army, which has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S., have increased. Bugti said the time had come for “major surgery” to elimina...