Balochistan militants deny responsibility in attack on mine workers

Dozens of attackers stormed a cluster of small private coal mines in Pakistan’s restive southwest on Friday with guns, rockets and hand grenades, killing some miners in their sleep and shooting others after lining them up.

“Baloch Liberation Army condemns the massacre of 21 Pashtun workers in Dukki, making it clear that our organisation has no involvement in this tragic incident,” the BLA said in an email late on Saturday.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the mines of the Junaid Coal Co in the mineral-rich province of Balochistan that borders Afghanistan and Iran.

It was the worst such attack in weeks and comes days before Pakistan hosts a summit of the Eurasian group Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

A decades-long insurgency in Balochistan by separatist militant groups has led to frequent attacks against the government, army, and Chinese interests in the region, pressing demands for a share in mineral-rich resources.