Rights group alleges fresh enforced disappearance of Baloch civilian by Pakistani forces
Quetta: Another Baloch civilian was forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces in Balochistan amid an escalating wave of enforced disappearance across the province, a leading human rights organisation said on Monday.
Condemning the incident, Paank, the Baloch National Movement’s Human Rights Department, mentioned that Arslan Shahwani was forcibly disappeared by Pakistani security forces on Saturday night from the airport road in the provincial capital Quetta.
“Arslan was working and residing at a bakery factory in Quetta at the time of his disappearance. The authorities have yet to acknowledge his detention or disclose his whereabouts, placing him at serious risk of torture and ill-treatment,” Paank stated.
Asserting that enforced disappearance is a serious violation of international human rights law, the rights body called on Pakistani authorities to immediately reveal Arslan’s whereabouts, ensure his safety, and either release him or present him before a court in line with international legal standards.
Earlier on Sunday, Paank expressed serious concern over the surge in enforced disappearances in Balochistan between 7–9 January 2026, during which, it said, eleven Baloch civilians were forcibly disappeared by Pakistan’s security forces across several districts, including Kech, Hub, and Khuzdar.
According to the rights body, on January 7, Pakistan’s Frontier Corps (FC) personnel raided homes in the Hotabad area of Kech, forcibly disappearing seven men, including students, shopkeepers, and a serving Pakistani air force employee, while on January 8, 40-year-old Kaleem Ulah, a school peon from Panjgur district, was abducted by the FC in Hub Chowki. Additionally, on January 9, Pakistan Army personnel detained Saleem Ahmed and a nursing student, Zubair Ahmed, from Naal Bazaar in Khuzdar.
Meanwhile, Paank also highlighted the enforced disappearance of another six Baloch men between December 25, 2025, and January 5 from the Jiwani region in Balochistan by Pakistani security forces, including FC, Pakistani Military Intelligence, and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
“These incidents indicate a systematic pattern of enforced disappearances and constitute grave violations of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Enforced disappearance is a continuing crime that places victims at serious risk of torture and extrajudicial killing, while causing deep suffering to their families,” the rights body stated.
Paank called for an independent investigation into the role of the Pakistani FC and the Army and for urgent international attention to the human rights crisis in Balochistan.
