Baloch Liberation Army

Balochistan Liberation Army
Participant in Balochistan conflict
Flag of the Balochistan Liberation Army
Ideology	Baloch nationalism
Leaders	Khair Bakhsh Marri
Area of operations	Balochistan, Pakistan AfghanistanIndia
Size	500
Allies	Baloch Liberation Front Baloch Republican Army Lashkar-e-Balochistan Balochistan Liberation United Front BSO (Azad)
Opponents	Pakistan
Battles and wars	Balochistan Conflict

The Balochistan Liberation Army (also Baloch Liberation Army, or BLA) is a Baloch militant organization based in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Since 2004 the BLA has waged an armed struggle against the state of Pakistan for equal rights and self-determination for the Baloch people in Pakistan, who have been subjected to repression for decades. The BLA is operating mainly in Balochistan, the largest province of Pakistan where it carries out attacks against the Pakistan Armed Forces. The Baloch Liberation Army became publicly known during the summer of 2000, after it claimed credit for a series of bombing attacks on Pakistani authorities.

The BLA is listed as a terrorist organization by Pakistan and the United Kingdom. The BLA has not been declared as a terrorist organization by the US, EU and India.

According to some sources, Misha and Sasha were among the architects of the original BLA.

On 10 February 1973, Pakistani police and paramilitary raided the Iraqi embassy in Islamabad without prior permission of the Iraqi government, during which a large cache of small arms, ammunition, grenades and other supplies were found in crates marked 'Foreign Ministry, Baghdad'. The ammunition and weaponry was believed to be destined for Baloch rebels. Pakistan responded by expelling and declaring persona non grata the Iraqi Ambassador Hikmat Sulaiman and other consular staff. In a letter to President Nixon on February 14, Bhutto blamed India and Afghanistan, besides Iraq and the Soviet Union, for involvement in a "conspiracy ... [with] subversive and irredentist elements which seek to disrupt Pakistan's integrity"

Wright-Neville wrote that besides Pakistan, some Western observers also believe that India secretly funds the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA). However, in August 2013 US Special Representative James Dobbins said “The dominant infiltration of militants is from Pakistan into Afghanistan, but we recognise that there is some infiltration of hostile militants from the other direction as well."So Pakistan's concerns aren't groundless. They are simply, in our judgement, somewhat exaggerated."

Some have claimed that Hyrbyair Marri has been the group's leader since 2007, but in an interview in 2015 he denied having any contact with the group. Hyrbyair's brother Balach had led the group from 2000 until he was assassinated in 2007.