Pakistan drone strike on Quetta civilians sparks outrage, internet shutdown across Balochistan

Pakistan, Oct 1 : At least nine people were critically injured after a Pakistan drone strike in Quetta hit civilians near the Chiltan Mountain range on Wednesday, sparking widespread outrage and an internet blackout across Balochistan.

While the Pakistani army claimed the operation targeted “terrorists,” eyewitnesses insisted that the victims were unarmed civilians gathered for a picnic at the scenic Hazarganji-Chiltan National Park, as reported by The Balochistan Post.

According to witnesses, dozens of families were present at the park when multiple explosions rocked the area, causing panic and chaos. “There were many civilians enjoying their holiday when the drone hit,” one local resident said, questioning how such an attack could occur near a Frontier Corps checkpoint in a populated area.

Doctors at a Quetta hospital confirmed that nine men had been admitted with severe shrapnel injuries. However, in its statement, Pakistan’s military media wing  the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR)  described the strike as part of an “intelligence-based operation” that “sent fourteen terrorists to hell.”

Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti hailed the attack as a “major counter-terrorism success.”

Local residents and human rights groups, however, disputed the official account, calling the incident a “misfire” that killed and injured civilians. They demanded an independent investigation and accountability for the deaths.

Amid rising public anger and viral social media images of the injured, authorities imposed a mobile internet shutdown across Quetta, a move activists condemned as “collective punishment.”

Rights defenders said such recurring internet blackouts in Balochistan reflect the state’s disregard for civil liberties and transparency, urging international scrutiny into the drone strike and its aftermath.