Pakistan: Two Baloch scholars latest victims of enforced disappearance in Balochistan

Quetta, Aug 15 (IANS) Several Baloch human rights organisations, on Thursday, raised grave concern after two Baloch scholars were forcibly disappeared by Pakistan's Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) amid an ongoing wave of enforced disappearances across the province.

Baloch Voice for Justice (BVJ) said that Usman Qazi, a PhD holder and Assistant Professor at BUITEMS University, and his younger brother Jibran Ahmed, an MPhil Economics student, were taken into custody by the CTD personnel in the early hours on August 12 during a raid on their home in Afnan town, of the provincial capital Quetta.

Since then, their whereabouts remain unknown.

"Enforced disappearance is prohibited under international law and constitutes a serious violation of fundamental rights, including the rights to liberty, security of person, and protection from torture or ill-treatment," the BVJ added.

Condemning the enforced disappearance, Paank, the Baloch National Movement's Human Rights Department, called the abduction of an academic and his young scholar brother "deeply alarming" and "utterly unacceptable".

The rights bodies urged the authorities to immediately disclose the fate and whereabouts of Qazi and Jibran, and hold the Pakistani authorities accountable for this grave violation.

They also called on to ensure the safety and secure the prompt and unconditional release of both the Baloch youth.

Meanwhile, raising concerns, the human rights organisations demanded the immediate release and protection of Shabar Jamaldini, a peaceful Baloch political activist, detained at Peterborough police station in the United Kingdom.

It said that he faces a serious risk to life if deported to Pakistan, where activists are often subjected to enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, and extrajudicial killing.

"Baloch activists face grave danger in Pakistan -- abductions, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings are widespread. In the first six months of 2025 alone, Paank documented 785 enforced disappearances and 121 killings. Returning Shabar would place him directly in the hands of those responsible for these abuses, risking his life and silencing his voice," Paank said.

The rights body BVJ urged the UK authorities to suspend any deportation or transfer, grant a temporary stay for a fresh asylum claim, ensure full access to legal counsel, and urged the international human rights organisations to intervene urgently.

Meanwhile, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) said that marking the 10th consecutive day, a Baloch family staged a protest camp outside the Karachi Press Club in protest against the enforced disappearance of their son by Pakistani forces.

Zahid Ali, a 25-year-old International Relations student at the University of Karachi, was forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces on July 17, along with his rickshaw, which he drove part-time to support his family.

"Led by his ailing father, Abdul Hameed, a hepatitis patient, the family has been braving heat, exhaustion, and complete official silence, refusing to end the camp until Zahid is safely returned. It has now been 29 days since Zahid's enforced disappearance. Authorities have not disclosed his whereabouts, turning his case into yet another example of Pakistan's systematic policy of enforced disappearances targeting Baloch youth," the BYC said.

The rights body urged students, rights groups, journalists, and Karachi's citizens to visit the camp, stand with the family, and amplify the demand for Zahid's immediate release.

--IANS

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