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A warrior race that confronted the British
in the First Afghan War
21/03/2006
Who are the Baloch?
A warrior race, they trace their origins
back 2,000 years to Aleppo in Syria. For the last 1,000 years or more, they
have lived in present-day Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan. The Bugtis'
attacks on the communications of the British Army in the First Afghan War
were so frequent that in 1845, Sir Charles Napier, the conqueror of Sind,
was despatched to quell them. They were not subdued until 1890. The British
District Gazetteer of 1906 noted: "The Bugtis are reported to be the bravest
of the hill tribes and intellectually, perhaps, the least bigoted."
The conflict
The Baloch conflict crackled and flared from the creation of Pakistan in
1947 to the 1970s as Baloch nationalists bridled against the
Punjabi-dominated central government in Islamabad. The conflict has steadily
escalated since 2000 as President Pervez Musharraf widened exploration of
gas fields, and the Baloch were gradually excluded from provincial
government, by Punjabis and Pashtuns. Rebellious tribal chiefs are linked to
a shadowy group that first surfaced in the 1970s, the Baloch Liberation
Army, which conducts guerilla attacks.
What could happen?
The rebellion has exacerbated concerns about Pakistan's possible collapse.
Islamabad has long faced instability in Kashmir while large swathes of the
North West Frontier Province are beyond effective control. Balochistan's
capital, Quetta, is the hands of Taliban-style Islamists while the rebels
are rising up in the hinterland.
American concerns
The US is concerned that Pakistan's forces have been diverted from battling
pro-Taliban and al-Qa'eda forces on the Afghan frontier, and that Pakistan
is using US-supplied aircraft to attack Baloch tribesmen.
Source: telegraph.co.uk
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