QUETTA: Protesters who had been staging a sit-in at the Quetta Airport Road, triggered by the killing of five tribesmen, injuring of eight and the kidnapping of 11 others from Hanna Urak Valley, called off their protest after the release of the kidnapped people, following successful negotiations between Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti and leaders of the protest committee. On July 5, armed men attacked the Hann Urak Valley area on the outskirts of Quetta, killing five tribesmen, injuring eight others, and abducting 11 others. In protest against the incident, the family members and local tribesmen had blocked the Airport Road for five days, severely affecting city traffic. The protest sit-in was called off after 11 abducted tribesmen were released late Thursday night. Martyred policemen’s families continue their protest; traffic between Quetta, Pishin, and Ziarat remains at a standstill Also, bodies of the five people were handed over to their families who buried them in their graveyards. Balochistan minister for health and a large number of people attended the funeral prayers of the slain tribesmen. In a statement, Balochistan Home Department Media Adviser Babar Yousafzai said that all abd­ucted people had been recovered. Reports suggest that tribal and religious leaders played a key role in securing the release of abducted people by holding talks with the kidnappers. Following this development, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti visited the protesters late night and held detailed discussions with them. According to the Chief Mini­ster’s spokesperson, Shahid Rind, negotiations with the protest committee leaders were successful, after which the committee agreed to end the protest sit-in. Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister said that if there had been any mistakes on the part of the government at any level, they would be acknowledged and addressed, and every possible effort would be made to provide justice and relief to the affected people. Martyred policemen’s families continue sit-in However, a separate protest sit-in staged by families of martyred policemen over the killing of 30 policemen in Ziarat entered its second day on Friday. Families of martyred police officers took away eight out of 18 bodies of the martyred policemen from the Civil Hospital and staged a sit-in at Koila Phatak Chowk with bodies of the policemen there, suspending all traffic between Quetta, Pishin, and Ziarat to demand immediate security guarantees and justice to the policemen. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Quetta to chair an emergency high-level meeting of Apex Committee with the provincial leadership to review the security crisis. Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2026