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US designates Balochistan Liberation Army as Foreign Terrorist Organisation
The US State Department noted that BLA had claimed responsibility for several terror attacks, including the March 2025 hijacking of the Jaffar Express train.
The US State Department on Monday designated the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and its alias, The Majeed Brigade, as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO). It added the Majeed Brigade as an alias to the BLA's previous Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) designation.
The United States had designated BLA as an SDGT in 2019 after several terrorist attacks. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a press statement, "Since 2019, BLA has claimed responsibility for additional attacks, including by the Majeed Brigade."
He noted that BLA claimed suicide attacks near the airport in Karachi and the Gwadar Port Authority Complex in 2024. In 2025, the group claimed responsibility for the hijacking of the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express train from Quetta in March, leaving 31 civilians and security personnel dead and holding more than 300 passengers hostage.
Further, Rubio said, "Today’s action taken by the Department of State demonstrates the Trump Administration’s commitment to countering terrorism." He noted that terrorist designations play a crucial role in America's fight against this menace and are an effective way to limit support for terror activities.
"Today’s actions are taken pursuant to section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended, and Executive Order 13224, as amended. FTO designations go into effect upon publication in the Federal Register," the official statement added.
BLA, which has been designated as a terrorist organisation by both the US and Pakistan, has been engaged in a decades-long insurgency against the Pakistan government, seeking independence for its natural resource-rich province.
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The militant group has repeatedly accused the Pakistan government of exploiting Balochistan's oil and mineral wealth, while the ethnic Baloch minority of the province battles with discrimination and poverty.
Last month, the US designated 'The Resistance Front', a proxy outfit of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, which claimed responsibility for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in India, as terrorists.
Rubio described the TRF as a "front and proxy" of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a UN-designated terrorist group that is based in Pakistan.
"Today, the Department of State is adding The Resistance Front (TRF) as a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT)," the official statement read.
