Quetta, April 3 (IANS) Four more civilians have been forcibly disappeared in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, a leading human rights organisation said, raising fresh concerns over enforced disappearances in the region.
These latest incidents come against the backdrop of a growing wave of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings across the province.
Paank, the Baloch National Movement's Human Rights Department, strongly condemned the enforced disappearance of a Baloch youth, Kareem, on Thursday from the Joosak area of Turbat in the Kech district.
“This pattern of abduction carried out in broad daylight, involving armed individuals and unidentified vehicles, reflects an ongoing and alarming trend of enforced disappearances in Balochistan. Such actions violate fundamental human rights, including the right to liberty, security, and due process, as enshrined in both national and international law,” the rights body stated.
Paank also revealed that a Baloch student, Shayhaq Rahim, was forcibly disappeared on March 31 from the Main Bazar in Turbat by Pakistan-backed death squads.
The rights body said that the abduction of Rahim in broad daylight underlines the prevailing climate of fear and impunity in the region.
Expressing grave concern over Rahim’s safety and well-being, Paank said, “Enforced disappearance is a serious violation of fundamental human rights, including the right to liberty, security, and due process. Such actions not only devastate families but also contribute to widespread psychological trauma within communities.”
In a separate case, another student, Noor Khan, was forcibly disappeared on March 28 by personnel of the Pakistani military from the Pasni area of Gwadar district in Balochistan.
Citing eyewitnesses, Paank stated that Noor was abducted in broad daylight, raising serious concerns about the continued pattern of targeting students and civilians across the province.
He was previously forcibly disappeared before December 6, 2025, from Turbat city in Kech, but was later released.
Additionally, the rights body said that one more student, identified as Sameer, was abducted on March 20 from Gwadar by Pakistani Military Intelligence (MI).
Paank further expressed serious concerns over the continued enforced disappearance of retired Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Bakhsh Sajidi, his brother Naeem Sajidi, and Engineer Rafeeq Baloch, the former chief of Sui Gas in the province, over the past two months.
Mohammad Bakhsh Sajidi is the father of Baloch National Movement (BNM) Chairman Naseem Baloch, while Naeem Sajidi and Rafeeq Baloch are his uncles.
According to the rights body, in the early hours of February 2, a large contingent of Pakistani security forces carried out coordinated raids on multiple residences in Hub Chowki in Balochistan.
The three individuals, it said, were forcibly disappeared without warrants or any subsequent acknowledgement of their detention.
“This case is not an isolated incident. It reflects the broader and systematic policy of collective punishment employed by the state of Pakistan, where family members of political activists are targeted in an attempt to silence dissent,” Paank stated.
--IANS
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