Quetta, February 24 – At least five civilians were forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces in Balochistan, human rights organizations said on Tuesday.
These latest incidents come against the backdrop of a growing wave of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings across the province.
The Baloch National Movement's Human Rights Department, Paank, reported that 33-year-old Ghulam Sarwar, a laborer from the Abdullah Bizenjo Goth area in the Hub district, was forcibly disappeared from his neighborhood on February 21 by the Pakistani Army and Military Intelligence.
Additionally, a 24-year-old student, Amir Baloch, was forcibly disappeared from the Killi Qasum Khan area in the Chaghi district on February 19 by the Pakistani forces.
The rights body further revealed that two brothers, Saadullah and Lal Jan, were forcibly disappeared by the Pakistan Army during a raid at their house in the Kuhado Jahoo region of the Awaran district on February 18.
Highlighting the atrocities against Baloch civilians, another human rights body, Baloch Voice for Justice (BVJ), stated that Danial Nasir, a graduate of the Governance and Public Policy Department at the National University of Modern Languages in Karachi, was forcibly disappeared on February 16.
"An educated young man with a future in public service has been taken without due process. His case reflects a continuing pattern in which Baloch students are targeted, silenced, and denied their basic rights," BVJ stated.
"Enforced disappearance is a grave violation of law and human dignity. Families deserve answers. Students deserve safety. Authorities must disclose his whereabouts and ensure his immediate release. This cycle of impunity must end," it added.
Amid escalating violence across Balochistan, two women were killed, and three others sustained injuries when Pakistani forces opened fire on a vehicle near the Phul Abad area in the province, local media reported.
Citing eyewitnesses, The Balochistan Post reported that the vehicle was transporting several Afghan nationals who were reportedly trying to reach Iran.
Reports suggest that other people present at the scene were taken into custody by Pakistani forces.
The two deceased women and those injured were taken to a nearby hospital, where the wounded are reportedly undergoing medical treatment.
Balochistan has been reeling under the endless atrocities at the hands of Pakistani authorities, who also facilitate death squads in the region to carry out enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and illegal detentions of Baloch people.
