Baloch asylum seeker assaulted by Pakistani roommates

Netherlands: A Baloch refugee and journalist from occupied Balochistan was attacked in a refugee camp by Pakistani refugees one of whom claimed to be an operative of the notorious ISI of Pakistan.

Baloch journalist and political activist Naeem Khan has sought refuge in the Netherlands after he was forced to flee his homeland Balochistan due to his journalistic activism.

However, Mr Naeem Khan has been facing similar threats and was assaulted in his host country. The Baloch Journalist was recently attacked by three Punjabis in a COA facility in The Netherlands where he was residing as an asylum seeker.

Naeem Khan told Balochwarna News that the incident took place on February 5th (Saturday night) when he was listening to Waqas Goraya on twitter space.

“I always participate and listen to Twitter Spaces and I usually sit in Kitchen when I am listening to such programs but that night I stayed in my room which I share with three other asylum seekers from Punjab province of Pakistan. Recently, an Arab family was transferred in our camp therefore I did not feel good to sit in Kitchen, so I rather decided to sit in my room and participated in the twitter space.”

Naeem Khan further said, while he was busy listening Ahmed Waqas Goraya on the space’s discussion at top bunk of his bed. “I heard my roommate named Tariq talking against Ahmed Waqas Goraya, he said Ahmed Waqas Goraya is a traitor of Pakistan.

“Another man named Safeer also intervened and said “he [Waqas Goraya] should be killed along with traitors of Pakistan also said he would kill Mr. Goraya without a head money because he is a traitor.”

Naeem Baloch further said, I told Safeer that, it is not Pakistan where you can do whatever you want. It is the Netherlands. Safeer replied to me “I have my contacts with ISI.”

“I ignored it, but all of a sudden Safeer threw a mug at me, luckily it missed me but the mug hit the bed and broke into pieces. He moved quickly toward cupboard and took a knife to attack me I was barefoot due to which I got cuts on my feet by the broken pieces of glass.

“Tariq, instead of taking the knife from Safeer pushed me against the wall. However, other residents heard the commotion from the next room and tried to enter our room than Tariq took the knife from the hand of Safeer at once as a third Punjabi man named Samar, a friend of Safeer and Tariq intervened to stop the Afghan man from entering our room.

Jawad, the Afghan man, forced his way into our room and rescued me and took me to his room.

The Afghan citizen, Jawad, has also seen and witnessed that when he pulled me out of the room. The other all three were all fine and unhurt. I was the one who was first attacked and also had hurts on my feet and hand.”

Naeem Khan told Balochwarna News that he was disappointed about the way he was treated previous time by the COA.

“Next day when I went to the police. I told the police that this is the second time. In April 2021, the a Punjabi refugees who shared room with me followed me to the wash room and attacked me there and threatened me to an affiliate of ISI

That time I complaint to the organization working for refugees called COA. I requested, that his mobile should be checked as this guy is threatening me, but they refused and said it is his personal stuff, we cannot do that. On the latest attack I had survived police wrote my complaint and contacted COA, but COA instead of investigating the incident put the blame on me. On the reference of COA police arrested me and I was lockup up instead of my attackers”

Naeem Khan told Balochwarna News that he was surprised that in a country like The Netherlands the COA and the police have believed the attackers’ lies who tried to physically harm him and instead of arresting and investigating the assailants, they have arrested Naeem Khan and locked him up.

This is not the first time a Baloch asylum seeker and political activist was targeted in exile. Previously, Baloch refugees were targeted in Canada, Sweden and Afghanistan.

The dead body of Karima Baloch ex-chairperson of Baloch Student Organisation was found from a lake in Canada. Her family and Husband says the Canadian police instead of a thorough investigation into Karima’s death have hastily decided that there was no foul play in her death.

Another Baloch journalist, Sajid Hussain a 39, fled Balochistan to seek refuge in Sweden, disappeared in early March 2020 on his way to Upsala University Stockholm.

His dead body was found two months later after his disappearance near a river in Stockholm. His mysterious death raised many questions as thousands of Baloch political activists back home in Balochistan were abducted and disappeared by Pakistani forces for months and later their bodies were found in roadsides and deserted areas in the same fashion.

Sajid Hussain extensively wrote about enforced-disappearances in Balochistan and Pakistan army’s tries with drug dealers. He was also working to promote Balochi language and literature.

In another similar incident a Baloch political activist Raziq Mandai Baloch disappeared from Kabul a month ago and was reported dead Pakistani Army and ISI run media out lets. Pictures of his dead body were also shown on Pakistani TV channel ARY News. His friends and family however has not been able to locate his dead body. Mr Mandai was also registered with the UNHCR refugee agency in Afghanistan but even the UNHCR has failed to trace his abductors and help his friends and family to find his dead body for last rituals.

Such growing incidents of targeting Baloch political asylum seekers and other who raise voice against Pakistani army brutalities in Balochistan show that the Pakistani Army and ISI are openly targeting political activists and critics under protection of UNHCR and European countries without being accountable for violation of international laws.

A UK-based Pakistani identified as Gohar Khan was convicted by a UK court for attempted murder of Waqas Goraya, a Pakistani Army critic living in Netherlands.

The widely read and circulated British News Paper The Guardian reported, “Pakistani exiles seeking refuge in the UK are being advised by counter-terrorism police to keep a low profile following warnings that their lives may be at risk after criticising Pakistan’s powerful military.”

According to The Guardian, Counter Terrorism Policing, a collaboration of UK police forces and the security services, has told possible targets that they need to inform police if they intend to travel within the UK.

One British-based dissident said she had received information that hitmen linked to Pakistani drug gangs would be contracted to target her.

The heightened alert follows a recent trial in which a London-based hitman was found guilty of conspiring to murder a Pakistani dissident.