Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province is reeling from fresh allegations of state-sponsored killings, with two civilians gunned down in separate operations by security forces. A leading rights organization sounded the alarm on Thursday, pointing to a disturbing rise in extrajudicial executions and forced vanishings.
According to Paank, the human rights arm of the Baloch National Movement (BNM), Balach Khalid from Turbat, Kech district, was assassinated Wednesday by armed motorcyclists tied to a notorious ‘death squad’ supported by Pakistani elements. The attackers unleashed a hail of bullets and escaped, leaving Khalid dead. This victim had a history of torment: abducted October 25, 2023, freed after 25 days, re-abducted, detained by CTD, and released—yet he survived two earlier assassination bids by the same group.
Elsewhere, on February 3, elderly Babu Atta Mohammad Badini, 60, lost his life to Pakistani army gunfire in Nushki’s Kili Kazi Abad. Paank labels this a hallmark of ongoing deadly assaults on non-combatants.
The plot thickens with the abduction of 15-year-old Hassanan Baloch by army personnel in Quetta on February 3. Paank’s comprehensive 2025 report, ‘A Year of Repression: Balochistan,’ lays bare the scale: 1,355 disappearances, 225 summary executions, indiscriminate bombings, and weaponized laws against protesters. Families and eyewitnesses face gag orders, stifling cries for justice.
As Balochistan grapples with these atrocities, international observers are urged to scrutinize Pakistan’s handling of dissent in the strategically vital region, where separatist sentiments simmer amid economic exploitation.