The killing of 11 Hazara coalminers in Balochistan in early January provided a snapshot of the tensions and contradictions that seethe within that province as equally as a bird’s eye view of the uneasy histories that tie Balochistan and Pakistan together. This latest killing was not the first of its kind and targeted attacks on the Shia Hazaras have regularly punctuated Balochistan’s chronology. Because they are Shia and are immediately identifiable because of their Mongol descent, the Hazaras provide obvious targets for the numerous sectarian outfits that populate Balochistan’s landscape.