Balochistan [Pakistan], January 28 : Multiple fresh cases of enforced disappearances have been reported from Gwadar, Kharan, Quetta, Khuzdar, Turbat, Panjgur and Karachi, with families alleging that Pakistani security forces detained several young men during separate operations and shifted them to unknown locations, The Balochistan Post (TBP) reported.
Two brothers were detained during a raid on their residence in Jiwani on January 22. Relatives said both were graduates of the Federal Urdu University, Karachi. Their whereabouts remain unknown.
In Quetta, three residents of Surab district, a doctor, a student and a schoolteacher, were taken into custody from different localities. In Kharan district, two young men also disappeared.
In Khuzdar's Ornach area, Pakistani forces, accompanied by members of a so-called "death squad", conducted a raid. Locals said women were assaulted when they tried to resist the arrests, and several children were left traumatised. Two men were reportedly detained and have since gone missing.
A 23-year-old student was forcibly taken from his home in the Balicha area of Turbat on January 24. In Panjgur, a resident was detained from the Washbod area a few days earlier, relatives said, adding that no details had been shared about his whereabouts or condition.
In Quetta, a government employee was taken into custody during a raid at his residence on Sariab Road on January 1. His family said they had received no information about his location, TBP reported.
In Karachi, a man allegedly forcibly disappeared from his home in the early hours of January 27. Family members said plainclothes security personnel entered the house between 2:00 am and 2:30 am and detained him without giving any reason.
Enforced disappearances have been repeatedly reported in Balochistan for over two decades. Human rights groups say political activists, students, teachers and civilians are routinely detained without warrants.
While some reappear after months or years, many remain missing or are later found dead, adding to what rights organisations describe as a worsening human rights crisis in Balochistan, according to the report.