A district official was killed when his house was attacked by terrorists in Balochistan’s Surab city on Friday, a statement from the provincial government said.

Balochistan Government Spokesperson Shahid Rind, in a statement, termed the incident a “nefarious attempt to challenge the writ of the state”.

“A bank was looted and the homes of several government officials were attacked, including Additional Deputy Commissioner (Revenue) Hidayatullah Buledi.

“Buledi was martyred while defending his home during the attack,” Rind said in the statement, adding that the official “set a new example of bravery” through his sacrifice.

“Women and children were also present at the residence during the attack,” he added.

The spokesperson added that “Indian-sponsored proxies have taken action on (India’s) behalf”, adding that a search operation was underway in the area.

“We are determined to thwart efforts of anti-state elements,” he said, according to the statement.

Frontier Corps and Levies personnel had arrived at the scene, he said.

Separately, Rind spoke to DawnNews TV and said that “geo-fencing is being used to track down the attackers.”

Dawn.com has reached out to the police and local administration in Surab for comment.

Last month, ISPR Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry accused India of activating its “assets” to inte­nsify terrorist attacks in Pakistan, presenting “irr­e­futable evidence” of Ind­ian state-sponsored terrorism, directed by the Ind­ian military personnel.

“Post-Pahalgam, because of the designs of terrorism that they have, they tasked all their assets, the terrorists operating in Balochistan, and we have credible intelligence for that, the Fitna-al-Khawarij and the independent terrorist cells … to increase their activity,” he had said, using the state-designated term for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan.

The security situation in Balochistan has worsened in recent months, as militants, long involved in a low-level insurgency, have stepped up the frequency and intensity of their attacks. The outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army, in particular, has adopted new tactics to inflict higher casualties and directly target Pakistani security forces.

In March, the Jaffar Express train was hijacked near Balochistan’s Sibi area, resulting in the deaths of 26 hostages, including 18 security personnel. Five more security personnel were martyred during the operation.

However, a significant improvement was seen in Pakistan’s internal security landscape in April 2025, “as both militant attacks and resultant casualties dropped sharply compared to March”, according to data released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS).

Pakistan ranked second in the Global Terrorism Index 2025, with the number of deaths in terrorist attacks rising by 45 per cent over the past year to 1,081.