Suspected Rebels Blast Gas Pipeline in Pakistan

Zahid Hussainm, The Wall Street Journal:

Suspected separatists have blown up a natural-gas pipeline in southwestern Pakistan, disrupting supply to a U.S.-Anglo power plant and providing the latest sign that a regional insurgency against President Pervez Musharraf's government is gathering intensity. READ MORE

The simmering conflict between Pakistani security forces and suspected separatists in Balochistan province flared up Wednesday evening near Pakistan's biggest natural-gas plant in the Sui fields, Pakistan's main source of gas. Four separatists died in the fighting. A spokesman for the Balochistan Liberation Army, a militant group, claimed responsibility for the two pipeline explosions, some 220 kilometers from the provincial capital Quetta.

The pipeline blasts came as the Pakistani military has cracked down on Balochistan nationalists following a rocket attack on Dec. 15 during a visit to the province by Gen. Musharraf. With the support of air force jets and helicopter gunships, government security forces have killed some 200 people, Baloch leaders claim. The government hasn't commented on casualties.

Insurgents have been striking back, focusing their attacks on key economic and government installations and railway tracks. The Baloch nationalists, who are discreet from the Islamic militant movement within Pakistan, are seeking greater autonomy for Balochistan and control over its natural resources. They have frequently targeted natural-gas facilities in the region.

For Gen. Musharraf, who has struggled to stem the support of Islamic radicals following a devastating earthquake in October, the insurgency provides another test to his government. The president, who has remained chief of army staff during his six-year rule, warned that the military would take all necessary action to put down the rebellion.

Samina Ahmed, director of the Brussels-based International Crisis Group, noted that conflicts in the region have continued to simmer long after cease-fires have been announced. "No army action has ever succeeded in Balochistan," she said.

The sparsely populated province -- which borders Afghanistan and Iran -- is rich in mineral resources and fulfills around 50% of Pakistan's natural-gas requirement. But continual fighting has impeded economic development. Since 1948, Baloch nationalists have fought four insurgencies for more political autonomy. Each rebellion has been suppressed.

But this time, the uprising appears to have united battle-hardened Balochistan tribesmen with educated Baloch people. Both are seeking more political autonomy and a bigger slice of the region's natural wealth. Nationalists want to review a contract for natural-gas royalties that has been in place since 1952. The nationalists also have strong reservations about the nearby Gwadar deep-sea port, which is being developed with China. The Baloch people fear that an influx of outside workers would further marginalize locals.

"People feel that they won't get their rights through democratic and legal means," said Abdul Haye, a former member of parliament and a leader of Balochistan National Party.

The fighting has stirred worries outside of Pakistan. The U.S. has conveyed its concern to the Pakistani government, according to a U.S. diplomat in Islamabad. Analysts fear the Pakistani army operation could deepen violence and may affect the campaign against Islamic militants. "The military has overstretched itself," said one Western diplomat in Islamabad.

The power plant, which continued operating on diesel fuel, is owned by Britain's International Power PLC and U.S. companies Tenaska Inc. and GE Capital Corp., according to Tariq Jamali, spokesman for the plant. GE Capital is a unit of General Electric Co. Mr. Jamali said a section of the pipeline needed to be repaired or replaced. A government official said the supply of natural gas wouldn't be restored before Friday at the earliest.

A recent statement by the Indian government criticizing the Pakistani army operation in Balochistan has soured relations between the two countries. Pakistani military officials allege that the insurgents receive financial help and weapons from India, a neighbor with which it has fought three wars.