At least 181 enforced disappearances and 12 extrajudicial killings were reported across Balochistan in March, according to a new report by Paank, the human rights wing of the Baloch National Movement (BNM).
The group said that Pakistani security forces and affiliated armed groups — locally referred to as “death squads” — abducted and forcibly disappeared individuals on a large scale, targeting students, activists, and members of civil society. Many of the detentions were reportedly carried out without warrants or judicial oversight.
Of those forcibly disappeared, 87 individuals were later released. Several were reportedly subjected to severe physical abuse while in custody.
The highest number of disappearances was recorded in Quetta and Kalat, with 37 cases. Other affected areas included Dera Bugti (18), Gwadar (15), Nushki (13), Dera Ghazi Khan (10), Kech (9), Barkhan (8), Awaran (7), Karachi (6), Lasbela (5), Mastung (4), Panjgur (3), and Naseerabad (2). One case each was reported from Islamabad, Kachhi, Jaffarabad, Jacobabad, and Khuzdar.
The group said several victims of extrajudicial killings had previously been reported as forcibly disappeared.
Among them was Nizam Baloch, who was abducted from Gilli, Buleda, on 11 March. His body was found the next day. His brother, Shah Nawaz Baloch, was later shot dead in Kech. Another victim, Shah Jahan Kurd — the brother of forcibly disappeared Baloch Students Organisation (BSO) leader Zahid Baloch — was killed in the Naal area of Khuzdar.
On 21 March, three people were killed during a protest calling for the release of missing persons. Paank said 12-year-old Naimat Baloch, Habib Baloch, and Imdad Baloch were shot dead during the demonstration. The group described Naimat’s death as “a symbol of state oppression.”
On 23 March, Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) activist and shopkeeper Ehsan Baloch was killed in Khuzdar. Paank called the killing “a premeditated targeted assassination.” Three days later, the mutilated bodies of Tohseef, Zaheer, and Irshad Baloch were found in Mashkay. All three had reportedly been abducted earlier.
The bodies of Saif Baloch and Anas Baloch — both missing for several months — were also recovered in March, the report said.
Paank also condemned the continued detention of BYC leaders Dr Mahrang Baloch, Beebow Baloch, Bebarg Baloch, and Shah Ji Sibghatullah Baloch under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) law.
The group raised concerns over the secret burial of 13 unidentified bodies in Qasi Graveyard in Quetta, saying they may be victims of enforced disappearance. It called for immediate forensic investigations.
Paank described the ongoing crackdown as a violation of international human rights law and urged the United Nations and global human rights organizations to intervene and hold Pakistani authorities accountable.