The situation in Balochistan has been formally brought before the British Parliament, where Labour MP John McDonnell has raised concerns about recent human rights reports, including the abductions of Baloch women such as Nasreena Baloch and Mahjabeen Baloch, as well as the reported use of drones in internal security operations. McDonnell has submitted three written parliamentary questions and tabled an Early Day Motion, placing the matter on record in the House of Commons. The Government is now required to respond to the written questions within three days. These questions are publicly accessible on the official parliamentary website.
McDonnell’s Early Day Motion expresses alarm at several recent developments in Balochistan. It highlights the drone strike in Zehri, District Khuzdar, on 5 October 2025 in which six civilians, four of them children, were reportedly killed. It also draws attention to the enforced disappearance of Mahjabeen Baloch, a student with disabilities who went missing on 29 May 2025, and the abduction of the teenage girl Nasreena Baloch on 22 November 2025. Further concerns include collective punishment practices, specifically the detention of five Baloch women by Pakistani security forces on 17 November 2025. The motion urges the UK Government to take further steps, recalling earlier assurances from Ministers that human rights concerns in Balochistan have been raised with Pakistani authorities.
In addition to the motion, McDonnell has submitted three written questions. These ask whether the Foreign Secretary has recently raised the escalating human rights violations in Balochistan with Pakistani officials, what assessment the Department for Business and Trade has made regarding the risk that UK-supplied equipment could contribute to abuses in the region, and whether any export licences have been issued for military or dual-use items that could be used in drone operations or internal security actions in Balochistan.
This intervention builds on a steady increase in parliamentary engagement on the issue. According to the Baloch National Movement (BNM), which has been writing to British MPs throughout the year, six MPs have already submitted questions to the Government concerning the UK’s position on Balochistan and ongoing reports of human rights abuses. The MPs who have raised the matter and received Government responses are Sam Carling MP, Sojan Joseph MP, Mike Martin MP, Jim Shannon MP, Kate Osamor MP and John McDonnell MP. Their involvement highlights growing parliamentary interest in scrutinising the UK’s relationship with Pakistan and closely monitoring developments in Balochistan.