Quetta, May 23 (IANS) Yet another civilian has been extrajudicially killed in Balochistan by Pakistani forces, a leading human rights organisation alleged on Saturday.
This latest incident comes against the backdrop of a growing wave of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances across the province.
Human rights body Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) mentioned that 27-year-old shopkeeper Mehran Baloch was shot dead in broad daylight by Pakistan-backed death squads on May 21 while leaving his shop in the Surap Bazaar area in the Kech district.
Condemning the brutal killing, the BYC said, “Despite the presence of checkpoints and heavy military surveillance, Baloch civilians are continuously being targeted, while criminal networks and drug traffickers move freely without fear. During the days of Eid, instead of celebrations, many Baloch families are receiving the dead bodies of their sons. Fear, sorrow, and silence have spread across the region as more families lose their loved ones.”
The rights body called on international human rights organisations, the United Nations, and the global community to urgently take notice of the worsening human rights situation in Balochistan.
“Whenever Baloch voices speak out against oppression, enforced disappearances, and killings, they are met not with justice, but with arrests, harassment, and further repression,” it added.
Meanwhile, Sabiha Baloch, the central leader of the BYC, on Saturday sharply criticised the violent raid on the residence of Zareef Baloch, who was extrajudicially killed by Pakistani forces last year, calling it a continuation of state repression against Baloch families.
“Security forces entered the house at night, confiscated women’s belongings, damaged household property, and terrorised family members already grieving the loss of their loved one. The targeting of families after custodial killings has become a recurring reality in Balochistan, creating fear and insecurity within entire communities.” Sabiha wrote on X.
Zareef Baloch was forcibly disappeared on December 26, while his tortured and mutilated body was abandoned near a neighbouring house the following day.
“His body bore signs of severe torture, including burns inflicted on his tongue, constituting torture and cruel, inhuman treatment prohibited under international law,” Sabiha stated.
The BYC leader said that the continued harassment of families after the killing of their relatives reflects the absence of accountability and weak protection of basic human rights.
“Raids on civilian homes, humiliation of women, confiscation of personal belongings, and intimidation of traumatised families are violations of fundamental human dignity and justice,” Sabiha said, slamming the Pakistani forces.
--IANS
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