Four Killed in Drone Strike on Picnic in Balochistan, BYC Demands Answers

SHAAL (QUETTA): The funeral prayers for four young men killed in a Pakistani drone strike in the mountainous Lutham area of Balicha, Tump, in Kech district, Balochistan, were held on Saturday morning at Balicha Talokan, with a large number of local residents as well as political and social figures in attendance.

The four men were identified as Sameer son of Abdul Khaliq; Yasir son of Muhammad Karim; Zubair son of Nawab and Deedag son of Muhammad Umar. According to details, Sameer and Yasir were residents of Balicha in Tump, while Deedag was from Raeesabad, Tump.

Family sources said that the four men, along with two other people, had travelled to the mountainous area for a picnic. According to the families, the group was targeted by a drone strike on Friday afternoon, killing four of them and injuring the other two. The families further said that the two injured men remain in the custody of Pakistani security forces.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) said the four men had gone to the area with friends and relatives and had informed the Pakistani military about their location and movements before setting out. The organisation argued that, despite the notification, the gathering was targeted in a drone strike.

The BYC described the victims as civilians engaged in their ordinary livelihoods and daily lives and said they were not involved in any armed activity. The organisation has called for an independent investigation into the incident and for those responsible for the deaths to be held accountable.

A different account has been presented by government authorities. According to the official position, the people killed in the strike were suspected militants. Authorities also claimed that a large quantity of weapons and ammunition was recovered from their possession.

Local residents and the families of the victims have rejected that account, calling it false and insisting that the men were civilians and were not carrying weapons. They have emphasised that the four men were killed unlawfully and called for an investigation into the misleading official narrative.

The BYC has similarly rejected the characterisation of the victims as militants and urged international human rights organisations, the United Nations, journalists and the wider international community to investigate the incident independently. The organisation has called for scrutiny not only of the Tump strike but also of the broader pattern of civilian casualties during military operations in Balochistan.

The funeral prayers on Saturday were attended by a large gathering of residents and members of the local political and social community, reflecting the significance of the incident for the area.