Balochistan: Surge in state violence including extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances

QUETTA: A recent wave of extrajudicial killings, torture, and intimidation in Balochistan has raised grave concerns among human rights organisations and activists. 

On February 3rd, two Baloch youths, Shukrullah and Nadeem Baloch, were detained by Frontier Corps personnel at the Washbood checkpoint in Panjgur’s Rakshan area. Merely two days later, Shukrullah’s mutilated body was discovered, while Nadeem was found critically injured in the Surab district, Balochistan.

According to local sources, the families of the victims were threatened by intelligence agencies and pressured into burying the deceased quietly to avoid further persecution. 

This incident has intensified fears within the community, reinforcing concerns over the longstanding pattern of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Balochistan.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) has strongly condemned the killings and called upon the Baloch nation to resist what they describe as a ‘kill and dump’ policy. The organisation further added that the frequent discovery of mutilated bodies reflects a systematic effort of ethnic cleansing and genocide against the Baloch people.

“The humanity at large must raise its voice against the State’s indiscriminate violence,” the BYC statement urged, highlighting the urgent need for global human rights bodies to intervene and hold authorities accountable.

Human rights groups have long accused Pakistani security forces of carrying out enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and systematic oppression of political dissidents in Balochistan. Despite repeated calls for justice, incidents of disappearances and killings continue with alarming frequency.