Pakistan forces disappear three more civilians in Balochistan: Rights group

Quetta, April 24 (SocialNews.XYZ) Another three civilians, including women, were allegedly forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces in Balochistan, a leading human rights organisation said on Friday.

Paank, the Baloch National Movement's Human Rights Department, strongly condemned the enforced disappearance of Sameena from her home in the Istakhli region in Khuzdar district on the night of April 22.

Citing reports, the rights body stated that Pakistan’s Frontier Corps (FC) and Military Intelligence personnel entered the house, subjected family members to violence, and took her into custody before transferring her to an undisclosed location.

Paank also mentioned that 20-year-old mechanic Akhter Hussain, a resident of the Shapatan region in the Panjgur district, was forcibly taken by FC personnel on April 19.

Expressing deep concern over the continued targeting of civilians, including women, Paank further revealed that 22-year-old Gull Banuk was forcibly taken from her home in the Singabad Karki region in the Kech district during a late-night raid on April 14 by personnel of the FC and Counter Terrorism Department (CTD).

Since her abduction, it said, her whereabouts remain unknown, placing her at grave risk of harm.

Condemning the enforced disappearance of Banuk, the Baloch Voice for Justice (BVJ) said, “The enforced disappearance of Baloch women is being carried out in the name of so-called security. These actions amount to collective punishment against entire communities. Women, who are already vulnerable, are being used as tools of pressure to silence families and suppress dissent. This practice violates basic human rights and undermines the rule of law.”

Meanwhile, a leading international human rights organisation sharply criticised the abduction and enforced disappearance of another Baloch civilian, Daad Shah.

Reports suggest that 28-year-old Balochi writer Daad Shah was forcibly disappeared for the second time on April 21. He is the brother of Fozia Baloch, a member of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC).

Front Line Defenders described the incident as an attempt to suppress the human rights work of his sister, Fozia.

“The documented violence against human rights defenders, especially those from religious or ethnic minorities such as the Baloch, has intensified over the past years. The authorities in Pakistan appear to act with a high level of impunity against its citizens and human rights defenders,” the rights body stated.

Front Line Defenders called on the Pakistani authorities to end reprisals against Baloch human rights activists and their family members and ensure that all human rights defenders in Pakistan are able to carry out their work with dignity and safety.

Source: IANS