ISLAMABAD :Rehman, also known as Ustad Mureed, led the BLA’s Majeed Brigade and was the key planner of the Jaffar Express attack in Quetta earlier this year. According to Indian media reports, he was neutralized during operations in Helmand.ecurity sources confirmed on Saturday that Gul Rehman, a senior commander of the outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), was killed in Afghanistan’s Helmand province on September 17.
In March, BLA militants targeted the Jaffar Express in Bolan district, blowing up railway tracks and holding more than 440 passengers hostage in a prolonged standoff with security forces. The assault left 26 passengers martyred, while four soldiers also lost their lives during the rescue operation. Security forces eventually freed the hostages and killed at least 33 attackers.
Officials say Rehman was also behind several other deadly strikes on civilians, security personnel, Chinese nationals, and projects linked to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
The development comes amid a rise in cross-border terrorism by militants based in Afghanistan. Pakistan has repeatedly accused India’s intelligence agency, RAW, of funding and supporting such groups.
Islamabad has urged the Afghan Taliban government to break ties with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and ensure its soil is not used for terrorist activities. The Afghan envoy in Islamabad was recently summoned to the Foreign Office and warned that failure to act would be treated as a hostile move.
Earlier in July, Pakistan also raised the issue at the United Nations, stressing that Afghanistan must not be allowed to become a safe haven for militants. “Afghanistan must not turn into a breeding ground for terrorists threatening the region and beyond,” Pakistan’s UN envoy Asim Iftikhar Ahmad told the General Assembly.
