A series of new enforced disappearance cases have been reported from Gwadar, Kharan, Quetta, Khuzdar, Turbat, Panjgur and Karachi, with families alleging that Pakistani forces detained several young men during separate raids and transferred them to undisclosed locations.
Two brothers identified as Balach, son of Muhammad Hassan, and Ehsan, son of Muhammad Hassan were taken into custody during a raid on their home in Jiwani on 22 January, sources said. Family members said both were graduates of the Federal Urdu University Karachi. Their whereabouts remain unknown.
Three residents of Surab district, a doctor, a student and a schoolteacher, were also taken into custody from different areas of Quetta. Dr Shahzain Ahmed, 25, was allegedly taken from Ganj Chowk on Spini Road on 24 January. Junaid Ahmed, 22, was reportedly detained at the Children’s Hospital on Khauri Road on 23 January. Ali Ahmed Reki, 40, was taken from Ganj Chowk on 24 January. Eyewitnesses said all three were moved to an unknown location.
Two youths were also disappeared in Kharan district. Sources said Abdullah, son of Hafeezullah Siyahpad, was taken from his home on the night of 18 January, while Farhad, son of Ahmed Baloch, was detained from the Juzhan area of Kharan city.
In the Ornach area of Khuzdar, Pakistani forces carried out a raid accompanied by members of a “death squad”. Residents said women were beaten when they attempted to resist arrests and that several children were left in a state of panic. Two men identified as Yaseen, son of Bahram, and Yousuf, son of Muhammad Kareem were reportedly detained and remain missing.
A 23-year-old student, Sulaiman Baloch, son of Fida Ahmed, was forcibly disappeared from his home in Turbat’s Balicha area on 24 January, according to local sources.
In Panjgur, Shehzad, son of Khair Bakhsh, was taken into custody from the Washbod area several days ago, relatives said. No information has been provided regarding his location or condition.
In Quetta, a government employee, Hafiz Nazeer Ahmed Lehri, son of Sanjar Khan Lehri, was detained during a raid on his home on Sariab Road on 1 January. His family said they had received no information regarding his whereabouts.
In Karachi, a man named Zahid Barakzai was allegedly forcibly disappeared from his home in the early hours of 27 January. Family members said security personnel in plain clothes entered the house between 2:00am and 2:30am and detained him without explanation.
Enforced disappearances have been widely reported in Balochistan for more than two decades. Human rights organizations say political activists, students, teachers and civilians are routinely taken into custody without warrants. While some return after months or years, many remain missing or are later found dead, contributing to what rights groups describe as a deepening human rights crisis in Balochistan.