In a disturbing escalation of human rights concerns, at least seven individuals have been reportedly subjected to enforced disappearances in Pakistan’s Balochistan province over the past week. The incidents, unfolding amid heightened security operations, have drawn sharp criticism from local activists and families.
On January 15, Pakistani security forces allegedly picked up Mehran Baloch, a young nursing student from the Bal-Nigor area, right outside a local hospital in Turbat. According to family members, the 20-something was whisked away to an undisclosed location without any formal charges or explanation. ‘We have no idea where he is or why he was taken,’ a relative told reporters, voicing the anguish shared by many in the region.
Similar abductions have surfaced in Kharan district, where operations intensified following an armed attack last week. During raids in the Baloch Abad neighborhood, Owais Ahmad Kamboh was detained along with his vehicle. Local sources confirm that no updates on his whereabouts have been provided to his family despite repeated pleas.
The sweep in Kharan also allegedly claimed three more young men: Muneeb Siapad, Makhfar Abid Siapad, and Ahmad Siapad. Eyewitnesses describe how security personnel cordoned off areas and conducted house-to-house searches, leading to these detentions without warrants.
In Quetta, the provincial capital, two residents from Killi Kambohani – Abdul Qahar and Musawwir Kambohani – were reportedly taken from their homes in overnight raids. Families insist that the men have vanished since, with no official acknowledgment from authorities.
Amid these fresh cases, a glimmer of hope emerged as five long-missing persons recently returned home, sources close to the families revealed. However, this does little to quell the broader crisis.
The Human Rights Council of Balochistan (HRCB) vehemently dismissed the provincial government’s recent claim that the issue of missing persons has been ‘permanently resolved.’ In a scathing rebuttal, the group labeled the statement as ‘false and contrary to ground realities,’ especially as families continue their desperate searches.
HRCB’s 2025 report paints a grim picture: 1,455 cases of enforced disappearances recorded this year alone, affecting 1,443 men and 12 women. Of these, 1,052 remain missing, 317 were released, 83 died in custody, and only three were formally sent to jail.
‘These figures expose the ongoing scale of illegal detentions,’ the organization stated. ‘Hundreds of Baloch citizens are still victims, with families knocking on every door – courts, commissions, NGOs – yet no trace of their loved ones.’
The group emphasized that such acts violate Pakistan’s constitution and international human rights obligations, branding enforced disappearances as a grave crime under global law, not mere propaganda. As tensions simmer in Balochistan, calls for accountability grow louder, demanding transparency and justice for the disappeared.