New York– US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday designated the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and its front organization, the Majeed Brigade (TMB), as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs).
Rubio also announced that TMB would be added as an alias to BLA’s existing designation as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) entity.
“Today’s action taken by the Department of State demonstrates the Trump Administration’s commitment to countering terrorism,” Rubio said. “Terrorist designations play a critical role in our fight against this scourge and are an effective way to curtail support for terrorist activities.”
The BLA, first designated as an SDGT in 2019, has claimed responsibility for multiple attacks, including those carried out by TMB. Rubio cited the March hijacking of the Jaffar Express train traveling from Quetta to Peshawar, in which 31 civilians and security personnel were killed and more than 300 passengers were held hostage.
The announcement came as Pakistan’s military chief, General Asim Munir, visited the United States, reportedly to attend a farewell event for US General Michael Kurilla, outgoing commander of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees military operations in Pakistan, the Middle East, and Central Asia. The event was held Friday in Tampa, Florida, to welcome Kurilla’s successor, Admiral Brad Cooper. Public schedules for the Departments of Defense and State, as well as the White House, did not list any meetings for Munir in Washington between Friday and Thursday.
The FTO designation prohibits material or financial support for the groups, freezes their assets, and restricts members’ travel. Separately, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) enforces the SDGT designation, which blocks assets within the US and bans transactions with the designated entities.
Baloch groups have long accused the Pakistani government of human rights abuses, including enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and systemic repression. Local media reports say many Baloch leaders remain imprisoned without trial or conviction, often under preventive detention laws, with bail routinely denied. Families and lawyers are frequently blocked from meeting detainees, even in defiance of court orders. (Source: IANS)
