The Human Rights Department of the Baloch National Movement, Paank, has condemned the enforced disappearance of Zeeshan Zaheer, a Baloch youth activist, allegedly abducted on Sunday evening by unidentified armed men in Panjgur, Balochistan.
Zeeshan had been at the forefront of a campaign seeking the safe return of his father, Zaheer Ahmed Baloch, who was reportedly forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces in April 2015 and has remained missing for over a decade.
According to Paank’s statement shared on X (formerly Twitter), Zeeshan was abducted from Football Chowk in Khudabadan, Panjgur. The group noted that he had notably participated in a long march to Islamabad aimed at highlighting the issue of enforced disappearances in Balochistan.
“Zeeshan Zaheer, son of Zaheer Ahmed Baloch, was forcibly abducted by unidentified armed men. In pursuit of justice, Zeeshan had been actively campaigning for his father’s release,” Paank stated, adding that the latest abduction fits into a larger pattern of state-backed targeting of Baloch youth and human rights activists.
Paank directly blamed the Pakistan Army and associated paramilitary groups, describing them as responsible for Zeeshan’s “unlawful abduction.” The group renewed its appeal to international human rights organisations to take urgent notice of what it called “ongoing atrocities in Balochistan.”
The incident underscores ongoing concerns surrounding human rights abuses in the restive province, where enforced disappearances, military crackdowns, and economic marginalisation have long plagued the region.
Despite repeated denials by Pakistani authorities, rights groups and civil society organisations have consistently accused the state of using disappearances as a tool to silence dissent, particularly among students, political workers, and local residents.
Observers and human rights bodies continue to call for accountability, transparency, and protection of fundamental rights in Balochistan—a region where the struggle for justice often comes at a devastating personal cost.
