Balochistan: Spike in extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances in February, rights body raises alarm
Quetta, Feb 22 (LatestNewsX) Human rights body Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) has strongly condemned the alarming surge in extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and staged “fake encounters” across Balochistan during the month of February.
In its latest report, the BYC confirmed that 19 individuals have been extrajudicially killed, while noting that additional cases have yet to be independently verified or officially documented.
“Children, youth, and elders are being targeted. Families seeking truth face intimidation, harassment, and threats. The rights to life, liberty, security, and justice are being systematically and deliberately violated,” it stated.
According to the rights body, due to severe restrictions on media coverage, limited social interaction, and an atmosphere of fear and intimidation, only a fraction of cases are formally registered or publicly documented.
Condemning the incidents, the BYC said: “These acts are unlawful, inhumane, and constitute grave violations of fundamental human rights. They represent a direct assault on the dignity, security, and collective existence of the Baloch people. Families across Balochistan are living in constant fear. Children, students, workers, and ordinary civilians are being targeted, abducted, and killed without explanation, due process, or accountability.”
“Lives are being taken with impunity. We demand justice. Every life lost must be accounted for. Those responsible must be identified, investigated, and brought before independent courts of law,” it added.
Citing one such brutal incident, the BYC revealed that 24-year-old student Hamdan Baloch was killed on February 18 in a staged “fake encounter” in Karachi, along with three others.
Hamad was taken from the Golimar area in Karachi by personnel of Pakistan’s Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) on December 29, 2025. After weeks in unlawful custody, he was presented before an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Karachi and was later extrajudicially killed while the trial was ongoing.
“His killing raises serious questions about due process, custodial responsibility, and the rule of law,” the BYC stated.
The rights body has called upon the international community and global human rights institutions, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the United Nations, to urgently condemn these grave human rights violations across Balochistan and take immediate action.
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