Quetta, April 5 (IANS) Four more civilians have been forcibly disappeared in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, raising fresh concerns over enforced disappearances in the region, media reported on Sunday.

Four men from Parom area of Balochistan’s Panjgur district were subjected to enforced disappearance in recent days, according to reports.

The missing individuals have been identified as Mohsin, Yahya and Abdul Ahad, who were reportedly taken into custody by Pakistani forces from the Jirek crossing point in Parom on March 16, The Balochistan Post reported.

In a separate incident, an individual named Karim was reportedly arrested and subsequently disappeared from Josak in Turbat on April 2.

According to sources, Karem had been subjected to enforced disappearance previously as well.

Meanwhile, several people, who were disappeared from various parts of Balochistan, had been released.

Faheem Sumalani, a resident of Jailani Road in Quetta, who was reportedly disappeared on March 1 was released in Quetta on March 21.

In a separate case, Hayat Bibi, daughter of Ahmed, who was detained on February 20, was released in Khuzdar.

Nizam, a resident of Gwadar, who had been missing since December 7 last year returned on March 20, as per the report.

Similarly, Yasir Ahmed, son of Gul Muhammad (missing since June 5, 2023), and Naveed Ahmed, son of Abdul Rasheed (missing since April 29, 2023) were reportedly released in Quetta on March 18.

The residents of various parts of Surab — Waheed Baloch, Akram Baloch, Sattar Baloch and Abdul Ghaffar Baloch, who were reportedly disappeared on March 28, were released on March 31 along the main RCD Road in Surab, The Balochistan Post reported.

Earlier in March, the Human Rights Council of Balochistan highlighted escalating abuses by Pakistani forces across Balochistan, documenting 87 extrajudicial killings and 234 cases of enforced disappearances during the month of February.​

In its latest report, the Human Rights Council of Balochistan recorded 87 killings across Balochistan in February, including 82 men and five women, while the identities of 15 victims could not be confirmed.​

“Of the total killings, the largest share resulted from indiscriminate firing, accounting for 30 cases. Targeted killings and custodial killings each accounted for 17 cases, while fake encounters were responsible for 15 cases. Alleged encounters accounted for eight cases, while drone strikes and mortar shelling were recorded in one case each,” the Human Rights Council of Balochistan report said.​

As per the findings, Pakistan’s Frontier Corps was responsible for the majority of killings, with 44 out of 87; the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) was linked to 19 cases, while a state-backed death squad was responsible for 13.​

In addition, several killings were carried out by unknown perpetrators, while Pakistani Intelligence agencies were linked to three cases.​

According to the Human Rights Council of Balochistan, 30 previously disappeared individuals, who were in the custody of Pakistani security forces, were extrajudicially killed in February.​

These killings, it said, were carried out by security forces and their affiliated death squads, either in “staged fake encounters or while the victims were in custody”.​

The report noted that among the 234 enforced disappearances at the hands of Pakistani forces, 203 victims were male, and one was female.​

Only 37 of those taken have reappeared, two were shifted to jail on “false charges”, while the majority remain without a trace.​

–IANS

akl/khz