On May 25, the Islamic State’s Khorasan Province (ISKP) released a 38-minute video claiming that thirty of their fighters were killed by Baloch armed separatist groups during a three-day battle at a training camp. The casualties reportedly included fighters from South Asia and Central Asia.
The video further alleged that Baloch separatists had been aware of ISKP’s presence in the area for years. However, both sides had avoided confrontation due to a non-aggression understanding, as they shared common territories.
Moreover, the video footage also depicted an intention of war with Baloch armed separatists and Baloch Yakjhati Committee and warned the public to stay away from gatherings of Baloch Nationalists.
Previously, the caretaker government of Afghanistan, led by the Afghan Taliban, accused ISKP of having safe sanctuaries in Mastung and Khuzdar. Meanwhile, several reports suggest that the head of ISKP, Sanaullah Ghafari, also known as Doctor Shahab Al-Muhajir, has been provided protection or is being sheltered in safe houses somewhere in the Khuzdar district of Balochistan.
ISPP’s Booklet: The Deception of Nationalism (Qaumiyat Ka Fareb)
Earlier, on May 23, the group published a detailed booklet of 117 pages, titled “Qaumiyat Ka Fareb” (The Deception of Nationalism), in which it explores the multifaceted and deeply entrenched dangers of nationalism, tribalism, and ethnic identity politics within the Muslim Ummah, with a strong focus on Pakistan. Among the most scrutinized elements in this discourse is the emergence and evolution of Baloch nationalist movements, including the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), Baloch Liberation Front, Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), and prominent Baloch human rights figure Dr. Mahrang Baloch. The document released by ISKP anchors its critique in Quranic verses and Hadiths that emphasise unity among Muslims:
The message is unequivocal: any allegiance or loyalty that supersedes religious identity—be it tribal, ethnic, or national—is viewed as a form of division and, by extension, a threat to the integrity of Islam. This foundational perspective underpins the criticism of all nationalist movements, especially Baloch nationalism.
Meanwhile, the group rhetoric appears disconnected from local realities, culture, and language, evident in their recent booklet, where they referred to the Baloch people as “Balochi,” a term considered incorrect.
Baloch Nationalism in the Crosshairs
Among all ethnic-based political movements discussed in Qaumiyat Ka Fareb, Baloch nationalism is most thoroughly discussed. The author accuses various Baloch nationalist actors of aligning with anti-Islamic forces, fostering division, and manipulating legitimate grievances for political ends. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), and Dr. Mahrang Baloch are placed at the center of this criticism.
The booklet portrays the BLA as a violent and secular separatist group with no ideological or spiritual connection to Islam. It accuses BLA operatives of targeting innocent civilians under the banner of liberation, cooperating with foreign intelligence agencies and secular regimes, promoting ethnic supremacy, and using violence to incite anti-Pakistan sentiment.
According to the booklet, their struggle is not rooted in justice or genuine resistance against oppression, but rather in a narrow and dangerous form of ethnic nationalism that serves the strategic interests of foreign adversaries.
The document references past operations by Baloch armed groups, particularly the controversial attack by the Baloch Nationalist Army’s Beebarg faction on Punjabi laborers in Mahirstan, located in Iran’s Sistan and Balochistan province, and the killing of seven other non-locals barbers in Gwadar last month. In this narrative, the BLA is depicted not only as a threat to the Pakistani state but also as a danger to the religious cohesion of the Muslim community in Balochistan and beyond.
ISPP on Baloch Yakjehti Committee
The BYC, a grassroots social and political organization advocating for Baloch rights, is accused in the document of cloaking its separatist tendencies under the guise of humanitarian activism. While BYC raises issues such as enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and economic marginalization, the critique suggests these grievances are selectively amplified to support a covert separatist agenda and selective humanism.
The document further claims that BYC avoids overt Islamic language in its campaigns. Its events and protests often include anti-state slogans. The organization capitalizes on global human rights discourse while distancing itself from pan-Islamic solidarity.
BYC’s engagement with international NGOs and human rights platforms is framed as a deliberate tactic to gain foreign legitimacy while undermining the Islamic core ideology of unity among Muslims.
Dr. Mahrang Baloch: The Face of a New Narrative
Dr. Mahrang Baloch, a vocal rights activist and a prominent Baloch voice, is given particular attention. The documents characterize her as part of an emerging intelligentsia using soft power to further separatist goals. Her prominence in media, advocacy for missing persons, and critique of state policies in Balochistan are all presented through a lens of suspicion.
The document alleges that she lacks references to Islamic brotherhood or Ummah-wide solidarity. It also caricatured that she is selectively silent on atrocities against Muslims outside the Baloch nation. It further portrayed that the BYC platform is used to amplify a narrative of state oppression while ignoring intra-Baloch injustices and secular values.
In this framing, Dr. Mahrang becomes a symbolic figure of “liberal ethnic nationalism”—one that appeals to Western audiences, international media, and human rights organizations but deviates from Islamic values.
The Broader Accusation: Manufactured Victimhood and External Agendas
The core accusation against Baloch nationalist movements is that they exaggerate or manipulate legitimate issues (like enforced disappearances and poverty) to create a narrative of permanent victimhood. This narrative is then, the author claims, used to gain sympathy from international human rights organizations and discredit the Islamic and national identity of Pakistan.
The text insists that many of these grievances could be resolved within an Islamic framework of justice, but nationalist actors deliberately reject this approach in favor of secular, ethnic-based narratives.
Furthermore, ISKP has intensified its social media campaign against ethnic-based movements. Despite targeting groups like the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) for promoting ethnic fragmentation.
In its publications, ISKP criticizes nationalism as a threat to global Islamic unity, framing it as an attempt to confine Islamic struggles within narrow geographical boundaries.
Additionally, ISKP has condemned the PTM for labeling their jihad as a “dollar war” and has issued threats against Manzoor Pashteen for calling on them to leave Pashtun areas.
Regarding the Baloch, ISKP questions the motives behind the separatist movement, particularly its advocacy for a secular state and religious freedoms in a hypothetical independent Balochistan. The group has described Baloch nationalist movements as among the most dangerous and misguided in Pakistan.
In a separate chapter, ISKP also criticizes the BYC for portraying the Islamic State as a state-backed proxy and for allegedly undermining Baloch identity.
“Qaumiyat Ka Fareb” ultimately calls for the rejection of all forms of nationalist identity. The document asserts that only through a unified Islamic identity can the Ummah overcome colonial legacies, resist foreign manipulation, and establish justice.
The Baloch struggle, like others, is acknowledged to stem from real grievances. However, the author warns that these struggles must be grounded in Islamic ethics, not secular separatism. Dr. Mahrang, the BYC, and BLA are presented not just as political threats but as ideological vectors challenging the very fabric of Muslim unity.
In the eyes of the document’s author, true liberation for Balochistan and the Muslim world at large lies not in fragmented identity politics but in a return to Quranic principles, prophetic unity, and a rejection of the nationalist mirage.