Summary

A weekend assault on the luxury Pearl Continental hotel in Gwadar has left at least eight people dead, including three gunman, four hotel workers, and a Pakistani soldier.

The attack was perpetrated by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist group that has been branded a terrorist organization by Pakistan along with the United States and the European Union.

In its claim of responsibility, the BLA declared that it’s targeting “Chinese and other foreign investors,” underscoring the ongoing threat to infrastructure projects in the Baloch heartland, particularly those belonging to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).