Reports have emerged that five individuals have gone missing following a military operation by Pakistani security forces in the Nasirabad area of Kech district, Balochistan.
Those reported missing include Feroz son of Dad Mohammad, Sagheer son of Dad Mohammad, Zarif son of Ameen, Fida, and Halal Bakhsh. According to local sources, security personnel conducted raids on several homes during the operation, after which the aforementioned individuals were allegedly detained and subsequently disappeared.
In a separate incident the same day, house-to-house searches were also reported in the Hiraabad area. Locals confirmed that numerous homes were searched by Pakistani forces, though no formal arrests have been confirmed.
Enforced disappearances have long been a source of deep concern in Balochistan, where military operations are frequently carried out under the pretext of counter-insurgency. Human rights organisations, both domestic and international, have consistently raised alarm over the alleged abductions of civilians by state forces in the region. Victims, often accused without charge of having links to “separatist” groups, are frequently taken without warrants and held in undisclosed locations for indefinite periods, without access to legal counsel or communication with their families.
In recent years, enforced disappearances have become a defining feature of the Baloch conflict. The families of the missing have repeatedly called for accountability and transparency, staging long protest camps and marches to demand the safe return of their loved ones. Despite periodic government assurances, the issue remains largely unresolved.
This latest incident in Kech adds to a growing list of such disappearances, fuelling further fears among local communities of arbitrary detentions and a lack of due process in ongoing military operations across Balochistan.