The police force allegedly attacked a peaceful protest held in Quetta on Thursday against the killing of the forcibly disappeared persons by Pakistan military forces.
The Quetta police reportedly fired tear gas and baton-charged the protestors, injuring several including women and children. Due to the tear gas shelling and police baton-charge, the condition of many women and children, including VBMP Vice Chairman Mama Qadeer, has been deteriorated, while many other protestors fainted.
In the viral videos on social media, the police can be seen firing tear gas and abusing the relatives and families of the forcibly disappeared persons. While in a viral picture on twitter, the injured hand of the ‘missing’ educationist Kifayatullah’s wife Kiran can be seen bleeding.
The protest in Quetta on Thursday was held in the wake of recent killings of nine Baloch men by the Pakistani forces in a military operation, which Pakistan army claimed were insurgents. While the families of the accused denied the allegations saying that those killed by Pakistan army in a “fake encounter” were already forcibly disappeared by the Pakistani law enforcement agencies. According to the victim families they had registered them in the list of Baloch missing persons and they have been protesting for their release or fair trial since they were allegedly abducted by the agencies.
Related: Ziarat: 5 of the 9 “insurgents” killed by army were missing persons
The Pakistani military operation in the Ziarat and Harnai districts of Balochistan was launched last week when a serving Lt. Colonel of Pakistani Army was abducted and killed by a Baloch “pro-independence” group, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA).
One of the protestors on Thursday said in a video recording that “just as the missing persons already in custody have been killed in Ziarat, we fear the same will happen to all our loved ones who are currently in the custody of the Pakistani forces.”
She went on saying that Engineer Zaheer, who was killed in the fake encounter in Ziarat, her sister was constantly protesting and in the same month, she also participated in the protest on the day of Eid that justice should be given to her and his brother should be brought to light, but she received the mutilated body of her brother.