Three bodies have been recovered from the Khuzdar district of Balochistan, according to local authorities. Officials confirmed that the victims had been shot dead.
The bodies were discovered near the M-8 motorway, at a location known as Sur Gazz. The deceased have been identified as Dr Abdul Majeed Mengal, Atta-ur-Rehman Mengal, and Mumtaz Mengal, all residents of the Zehri and Wadh areas.
Following the discovery, the bodies were transferred to Khuzdar Teaching Hospital for medico-legal formalities. Preliminary investigations are underway, although the motive behind the killings remains unknown at this stage.
The recovery of dead bodies under unexplained and violent circumstances is not uncommon in Balochistan, a region plagued by years of conflict, insurgency, and heavy-handed state responses. Khuzdar, in particular, has seen numerous similar incidents over the past decade.
Baloch human rights groups and civil society organisations have repeatedly raised concerns over enforced disappearances, often implicating state security agencies. Families of the missing accuse authorities of abducting individuals suspected of political dissent or alleged ties to nationalist armed groups. In many cases, these individuals remain missing for months or years—only to be found dead, their bodies abandoned in remote or roadside locations.
Groups like the Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) have documented hundreds of such cases, many of which remain unresolved. Despite protests, hunger strikes, and long marches by affected families, accountability has been limited and judicial inquiries rare.
In this context, the killing of the three Mengal men raises fears of yet another extrajudicial incident, though no group has claimed responsibility, and no official explanation has been provided.