A young man who was injured in a shooting in Kech district of Balochistan, allegedly at the hands of a local “death squad”, has died after four days of treatment in Karachi.
According to reports, the victim, identified as Hashim s/o Abdul Qadir, resident of Alandur, Buleda, was reportedly wounded in gunfire by alleged members of a government-backed militia on 27 September. He was transferred to Karachi for medical treatment but succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday.
Locals refer to such groups as “death squads,” alleging they operate with the backing of Pakistani forces and have targeted civilians, especially political and social activists, in various parts of Balochistan. Baloch activists and human rights workers argue that these “death squads” are a tactic to silence the dissenting voices in Balochistan.
On 28 September, two people were wounded in a similar incident in Parom, Panjgur district, while earlier this month four young men were shot dead in separate attacks in Tump and Mand, Kech.
Political parties, civil society groups and human rights organisations in Balochistan have repeatedly claimed that these groups function with official support. They have called on the government to disband them, but so far these appeals have landed on deaf ears.