Ten security officials, 37 militants killed in SW Pakistan attacks: official

Quetta, Pakistan: At least 10 security officials and 37 militants were killed as ethnic Baloch separatists launched coordinated attacks across Pakis...

Quetta, Pakistan: At least 10 security officials and 37 militants were killed as ethnic Baloch separatists launched "coordinated" attacks across Pakistan's Balochistan province on Saturday, an official said, the latest violence in the insurgency-hit southwest region.

Pakistan has been battling a separatist insurgency in Balochistan for decades, where militants target state forces, foreign nationals and non-locals in the mineral-rich southwestern province bordering Afghanistan and Iran.

"The terrorists ... launched coordinated attacks this morning at more than 12 locations", a senior security official told AFP on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the media.

"Thirty-seven terrorists have been eliminated... Ten security personnel were martyred while a few others were injured," the official added.

A senior security official based in the provincial capital of Quetta told AFP at least four policemen were killed in Quetta, although it was not clear whether they were included in the 10 officials killed.