Three excise officials were abducted at gunpoint after unidentified armed men attacked an excise department checkpost on the Dalbandin–Taftan Highway in Balochistan’s Chagai district, police said on Tuesday.
The attack took place on Monday evening when around 30 armed men surrounded the checkpost and held the officials on duty at gunpoint before abducting three excise personnel, police said. The identities of the abducted officials were not immediately disclosed.
The attackers also seized two official vehicles and government-issued weapons before fleeing the area, officials said.
Police and other law enforcement personnel reached the site shortly after the incident, cordoned off the area and launched a search operation to recover the abducted officials and trace the attackers, officials have said.
An investigation has also been launched to establish the identity of the assailants and determine the route they used to escape, officials confirmed.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack while authorities have not released further details about the circumstances surrounding the abduction.
The incident comes amid continuing security challenges in Balochistan, where attacks targeting security personnel and government officials have intensified in recent months.
Earlier this month, security forces and law enforcement agencies launched Operation Shaban in Balochistan following a deadly attack on a police post at the Mangi Dam pumping station in Ziarat on July 6, in which armed attackers kidnapped and killed 27 police officers.
According to the Center for Security, Strategy and Policy Research’s Pakistan Risk, Incident and Security Monitor, Balochistan recorded 118 attacks in May, up from 102 in April, highlighting the province’s persistent security challenges.
