The Zhob Militia is a paramilitary regiment of the

Frontier Corps The Frontier Corps ( ur, , reporting name: FC), are a group of paramilitary forces of Pakistan, operating in the provinces of Balochistan (Pakistan), Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, to maintain law and order while overseeing the country's ...

, a Civil Armed Force based in

Baluchistan Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...

and are one of the oldest paramilitary forces in the region. The militia is under the control of the

and is commanded by officers seconded from

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

History

They were raised by Cavalry officer William Raikes-Hodson in 1852 to be an infantry scouting adjunct to the Corps of Guides and

Hodson's Horse 4th Horse (Hodson's Horse) is a part of the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army, which had its beginnings as an irregular cavalry regiment during the time of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Formation The regiment was raised during the turbulent tim ...

. They were raised entirely from Pashtun and Baluch tribesmen as well as Persian-speaking Afghans. Between 1917 and 1920 they acted as a

Mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "Mounted rifles are half cavalry, mounted infantry merely specially m ...

regiment under the command of British officers. They fought against Amānullāh Khān forces during the

Third Anglo-Afghan War The Third Anglo-Afghan War; fa, جنگ سوم افغان-انگلیس), also known as the Third Afghan War, the British-Afghan War of 1919, or in Afghanistan as the War of Independence, began on 6 May 1919 when the Emirate of Afghanistan inv ...

. The enlisted men and sepoys are mostly recruited from the

Tareen The Tareen (or Tarin) ( ps, ترین) is a Pashtun tribe inhabiting southern Afghanistan, and western region of Pakistan.Caroe O. ''The Pathans 550 B.C.- A.D. 1957'' Oxford University Press . Page 521.Muhammad Hyat Khan, "Hayat i Afghan" (Orig. i ...

Kakar The Kakar (Pashto: کاکړ) is a Gharghashti Pashtun tribe, based mostly in Northern Balochistan, Pakistan and Loy Kandahar in Afghanistan. Legendary origin Kakars are sons of Gharghashti who was the son of Qais Abdul Rashid. In Herat, the Ka ...

and Abdali tribes native to the region. The Militia converted from the .303 Rifle to the

L1A1 Self-Loading Rifle The L1A1 Self-Loading Rifle, officially "Rifle, 7.62mm, L1A1", also known just as the SLR (Self-Loading Rifle), by the Canadian Army designation C1A1 (C1) or in the US as the "inch pattern" FAL,Especially on the American surplus market. is a Br ...

in 1984. In the latter part of the Soviet-Afghan War, the unit carried on scouting and mounted reconnaissance operations deep into

Khost Khōst ( ps, خوست) is the capital of Khost Province in Afghanistan. It is the largest city in the southeastern part of the country, and also the largest in the region of Loya Paktia. To the south and east of Khost lie Waziristan and Kurram in ...

and

Ghazni Ghazni ( prs, غزنی, ps, غزني), historically known as Ghaznain () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana ( gr, Αλεξάνδρεια Ωπιανή), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

Organization

The Zhob Militia is headquartered at Zhob Contonment, previously called

Fort Sandeman Zhob (; ) or Zhobak (), formerly known as Appozai or Fort Sandeman, is a city and district capital of Zhob District in Balochistan (Pakistan), Balochistan province of Pakistan. Zhob is located on the banks of Zhob River 337 km from Quetta, the ca ...

, and its four wings are located at

Zhob Zhob (; ) or Zhobak (), formerly known as Appozai or Fort Sandeman, is a city and district capital of Zhob District in Balochistan province of Pakistan. Zhob is located on the banks of Zhob River 337 km from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan. T ...

Sambaza Sambaza is a populated-place within the Zhob District of Balochistan, Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous countr ...

Muslim Bagh Muslim Bagh (Pashto/ ur, مسلم باغ), is a town in Killa Saifullah District, Balochistan, Pakistan. It is located at an altitude of . According to the Census of 1998, the population of Muslim Bagh is 70,361 (male 37,303 and female 33,058), w ...

, and Qamardin Karaz. It is headed by a Brigadier with a Lt. Col commanding each wing

Equipment

All Battalions are equipped along Light Infantry/Rifles lines with minimum heavy support weapons. Unlike other Infantry Battalions of the Pakistan Army, Zhob Militia does not have a Support Company having heavy weapons like Anti Tank Missiles and

120 mm Mortar 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...

s. All Rifle Companies are equipped with the

and

MG3 machine gun The MG 3 is a German general-purpose machine gun chambered for the 7.62×51mm NATO cartridge. The weapon's design is derived from the World War II era MG 42 ''Einheitsmaschinengewehr'' (Universal machine gun) that fired the 7.92×57mm Mauser ...

only, with Support Platoons in each Company armed with 81 mm Mortars and Target-Locating Radars.

Units

* Headquarters Wing * 149 Wing

References

{{Frontier Corps Zhob District Regiments of the Frontier Corps