Aslam Baloch (1975 – 25 December 2018),^[1] also known as Achu (variants include Achoo and Achou),^[2] was a Baloch militant and nationalist who founded Achu faction of the Balochistan Liberation Army and Majeed Brigade. He spent most of his life fighting against the state in Balochistan, Pakistan. At the time of his death, he was based in Kandahar, Afghanistan and was killed by a suicide attack in Ayno Maina, Kandahar.

Aslam was born as Takari Mohammad Aslam in 1975 in Quetta.^[3] His father, Raheem Dad, identified with the Dehwar clan, raised him in a non-tribal urban environment, which set Aslam apart from the traditional Baloch tribal aristocracy.^[3]

He received his early education in Quetta from the Special High School. As a teenager in the early 1990s, Aslam became involved in Baloch nationalist circles. He was influenced by Baloch nationalist leader Khair Bakhsh Marri, regularly attending Marri's study circles ("Haq Tawar") in Quetta after the leader returned from exile in 1994.^[3][4] These discussions on social and political issues shaped Aslam's worldview, and by 1994, he had committed himself to the Baloch independence movement.^[4]

Aslam's early activism quickly transitioned into armed struggle. In the mid-1990s, he was among the young nationalists who helped revive the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) which had been dormant since the 1970s.^[5] By 1995, he played a role in reorganizing and strengthening the BLA’s underground network across Balochistan.^[4]

By 2000, when the BLA formally resurfaced to begin a new phase of insurgency, Aslam Baloch was at the forefront. He reportedly commanded the BLA’s first and largest guerrilla camp in the Bolan area of Balochistan.^[4]

By the mid-2000s, as Pakistan's military crackdown in Balochistan intensified (especially after the 2006 killing of Nawab Akbar Bugti), Aslam remained active in the guerilla campaign. In 2006, facing heavy pressure, he led BLA cadres across the border to seek refuge, part of a trend that saw Baloch rebels using sanctuaries in Afghanistan.^[3]

By the early 2010s, Aslam emerged as a key commander within the BLA, becoming the operational chief of its hardline faction. During this period, internal divisions surfaced between exiled tribal leaders and younger field commanders. Aslam "Achu", as he was known, along with fellow commander Bashir Zaib, broke away from the BLA's nominal leader in exile, Hyrbyair Marri, to form a separate faction that operated on the ground.^[6][5] Under his leadership, the organization became more publicly visible.^[7]

He was responsible for establishing an elite unit within the BLA, the Majeed Brigade which was formed in 2010 to conduct suicide attacks on high-value targets.^[8] As the head of this unit, Aslam oversaw its operations until his death in 2018.^[8]

In 2018, authorities identified him as the mastermind behind an attack on the Chinese consulate in Karachi on November 23, in which militants from the Majeed Brigade attempted to storm the consulate, leading to the deaths of two Pakistani policemen and two civilians before the attackers were killed.^[9][10] Pakistani investigators linked the attack to foreign intelligence, naming Aslam "Achu" and other BLA figures, alongside exiled leader Hyrbyair Marri, in their case.^[11]

Under his command, the BLA carried out coordinated insurgent operations in both Balochistan and Pakistan's major cities. On August 11, 2018, his son, Rehan Baloch, carried out the unit's first known suicide bombing by attacking a bus carrying Chinese engineers near Dalbandin in Balochistan.^[7] The explosion injured several Chinese nationals and resulted in the death of his son.^[8] By late 2018, he was often referred to by the honorary title "General" within militant circles and was also known as "Ustad" (teacher) for his role in training younger fighters.^[4]

Pakistani security officials regarded him as a major insurgent operative. He faced numerous criminal cases, including charges related to bombings and targeted killings, and the provincial government had placed a bounty of Rs. 5 million on him.^[12] Despite several close encounters, including a serious injury during a Pakistani forces operation in Balochistan's Bolan area in 2017, he managed to evade capture by moving between safe havens.^[9] His two decades of involvement in militant operations greatly influenced the tactics and strategies employed by the BLA.^[5]

Aslam Baloch was a Baloch nationalist and secessionist. In his rare public statements, Aslam voiced strong opposition to the Pakistani state and its policies in Balochistan. He accused Pakistan of oppressing the Baloch people and plundering Balochistan's abundant natural resources, such as gas and minerals.^[13] In a 2018 video interview given to an Indian news agency, Aslam Baloch alleged that Pakistan and its ally China had conceived "a malicious plan to eliminate Baloch identity" through economic projects and military oppression.^[13] He specifically denounced the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as a vehicle for colonization of Balochistan, and warned that Baloch fighters would resist foreign investments that did not benefit the local people.^[13]

Aslam advocated a more egalitarian and militant approach: he favored a "middle-class" leadership for the BLA and believed in distributing power based on ability rather than tribal entitlement.^[14] While leading BLA-Achu faction, he embraced tactics like suicide bombings that even other Baloch groups had shunned.^[5] Aslam framed these extreme measures as necessary in what he saw as a war for Baloch survival. He remained resolutely opposed to any reconciliation with the Pakistani state; there is no record of him ever supporting peace talks or political accommodation. Until his last days, he vowed to continue armed struggle, threatening more "fidayeen" (sacrificial) attacks against Pakistani forces and Chinese nationals to further the Baloch cause.^[8] His ideology was one of hardline Baloch separatism, rejecting Pakistani rule outright, targeting symbols of state power and foreign influence, which resulted in a generation of educated Baloch youth to take up arms to free Balochistan.^[13][10]

Aslam Baloch was killed on December 25, 2018 in a suicide bombing in Kandahar, Afghanistan.^[9] The attack occurred in the Aino Maina area, an upscale neighborhood of Kandahar, where Aslam and other BLA leaders had convened, reportedly for a planning meeting.^[9] A suicide bomber detonated explosives at or near the house, critically wounding Aslam. He was rushed to a hospital but succumbed to his injuries soon after.^[9] Five other BLA militants were killed alongside him, including two fellow commanders (identified as Taj Muhammad “Tajo” Marri and Karim Marri alias Rahim Baloch) and several guards.^[12] The BLA's spokesperson, Jiyand (Jeeyand) Baloch, confirmed Aslam's death in a statement from an undisclosed location, hailing him and his fallen comrades as martyrs.^[9]