The Baloch National Movement (BNM) has condemned Pakistani Air Force strikes on the Gidar area of Surab district in Balochistan as a 'blatant war crime', after the attacks reportedly killed more than 30 civilians — including women and children under ten years old — and injured several others. The strikes occurred in the early hours of Wednesday, 13 August, with the military reportedly carrying out indiscriminate bombardment over residential areas.

What Happened in Surab

According to reports, the Pakistani Air Force conducted aerial strikes on residential localities in the Gidar area of Surab, causing significant damage to civilian property alongside the reported loss of life. The precise military justification for the strikes has not been independently verified. Pakistan's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) — the official media wing of the country's armed forces — has not been cited in confirmed accounts of the incident, and civil society groups have urged international media to report independently rather than rely on ISPR narratives.

Following the strikes, relatives of the deceased and local residents staged a sit-in protest by placing the bodies of the dead in Surab's main square along the N-25 Quetta-Karachi highway, according to The Balochistan Post. The demonstration disrupted traffic on the key arterial route, leaving long queues of vehicles stranded on both sides. Protesters said they would maintain the sit-in until their demands were addressed.

BNM's Condemnation and International Demands

The BNM said the strikes constitute 'flagrant violations of international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions.' In a statement, the group said: 'The Pakistan Army is not acting alone in these acts — which include indiscriminate force against civilians, home demolitions, and forced displacement — as local politicians and political parties facilitating these crimes are equally complicit.'

The organisation called on the European Union (EU) and international bodies to take 'swift, effective action' and urged the EU to immediately suspend Pakistan's Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) status and all associated trade preferences, arguing that such privileges are contingent on compliance with fundamental human rights standards. The BNM further called for an independent investigation by global rights organisations, warning that international inaction would 'undermine the credibility of global institutions.'

Civil Society Groups Respond

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), a human rights body, described the attack as a 'massacre' and placed it within what it called a documented pattern of aerial bombardment across Balochistan. 'This is not an isolated incident. It follows a documented pattern of aerial bombardment of civilian areas across Balochistan, from Zehri to Mastung, where the Pakistani military has repeatedly targeted residential areas and subsequently labelled those killed as "militants" to evade accountability,' the BYC said.

The Baloch Women Forum (BWF) also condemned the strikes, stating that targeting civilians inside their homes is a 'blatant act of brutality' and a 'grave assault on civilian life.' It added: 'Women, children and elderly people cannot be treated as targets under any claim of security or military necessity.'

Broader Context

Balochistan has been the site of a long-running, low-intensity conflict between Pakistani security forces and Baloch separatist and nationalist groups. Civil society organisations have repeatedly alleged that military operations in the province disproportionately harm civilian populations, claims the Pakistani government has consistently denied. The BYC's reference to prior incidents in Zehri and Mastung suggests this is not the first time aerial assets have been deployed in the region's internal conflict.

The scale of international response — if any — to the BNM's demands regarding GSP+ suspension and an independent investigation will be closely watched in the coming days.