On January 29, during an overnight attack in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province, unidentified assailants believed to be members of the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), killed at least six fighters and four security officials. The attackers target military and security installations with guns and rockets in the city of Mach, which is located 65km (40 miles) south of Balochistan’s capital, Quetta, according to Jan Achakzai, the provincial information minister.

In this context, a video has been widely shared on social media in which two vehicles are seen on fire.The video is shared with a caption hinting that the video is of the insurgent attack that happened in Pakistan. 

A social media user shared the video with a caption that read, “Local sources claims that multiple Pakistani forces have been killed and wounded in the ongoing major attack in #Mach (#Bolan). #Balochistan. #OperationDara_e_Bolan”

A similar post can be seen here.

SouthCheck found the claim to be misleading. The video is of a political clash in Karachi. 

Upon conducting a Google Reverse Image Search, the same video, along with others, was found in an X post by Pakistani journalist Samar Abbas on January 29, 2024. The accompanying caption suggested it was related to a clash between Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) and Pakistan People's Party (PPP) workers during an election rally in Karachi’s Nazimabad.

A screenshot from the video was also featured by Pakistani television channel Dunya News in a report on the clash between MQM-P and PPP workers.

Further investigation with relevant keywords led to a news story published by Aaj English TV on January 29, 2024. The report indicated that a political worker of MQM-P lost his life while a PPP activist sustained injuries during a violent clash between the two parties in Karachi’s Nazimabad area. Allegedly, some PPP workers attempted to hoist the party flag in front of the MQM-P office, leading to an exchange of harsh words and ultimately escalating to physical violence.

Hence, we can ascertain that the viral video is from a political clash in Karachi and does not show the Baloch Liberation Army’s attack on the Pakistani forces.