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Paank has vehemently denounced the enforced disappearances in Balochistan, drawing attention to a troubling trend of human rights abuses by Pakistani officials.
Fears of state-sponsored repression increased after eight people were forcibly removed from various locations throughout the province between February 3 and February 5, 2025. Among the missing is Mehmood, son of Mehfooz, who was abducted from his home in Essai, Panjgur. Hafiz Ali Mir, a student from Kharan district, was taken by Pakistani forces in Quetta. In Gwadar, Abdullah Baloch, son of Muhammad Ali, was forcibly disappeared from Kulanch. Several disappearances were reported in Kech district's Bhaman, Turbat. Numan, son of Rafiq, a student, was illegally detained, while Roshan, son of Ali Muhammad, and his brother Rahil Ali, both shopkeepers, were taken from their home. Naeem Bashir, a second-year student at Atta Shad Degree College, also went missing from the area. In Turbat City, Adam Ghulam, a labourer working on a sewing machine, was detained under unknown circumstances. Earlier in the day, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), a human rights organization in Pakistan, denounced the "cold-blooded murder" of Baloch scholar Allah Dad Baloch by death squads supported by the government. BYC stated on X that targeted killings are increasingly commonplace in Balochistan and that enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions, and targeted killings continue to occur every day. "The cold-blooded murder of Allah Dad Wahid Baloch, a resident of Singani Sar, Turbat--a postgraduate and MPhil scholar--by state-backed death squads is yet another grim continuation of the Baloch genocide. Allah Dad was an intellectually gifted and hardworking individual, always at the forefront of his community. His targeted killing by the state marks another brutal chapter in the history of the Baloch genocide." BYC also shared a list of forcibly disappeared individuals since the beginning of 2025. Human rights advocates have voiced grave concerns about the worsening situation and demanded immediate international action to halt the disappearances and bring those responsible to justice. Given the grave circumstances in Balochistan, Paank and other organizations are still calling for justice for the victims and their families. (ANI)
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