752 Missing, 117 Killed: BYC says Pakistan is silencing Baloch voices with force

Balochistan [Pakistan], July 26 (ANI): The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) released its semi-annual human rights report (January-June 2025) during a press conference held at the Karachi Press Club, highlighting what it described as systematic and widespread state repression across Balochistan, The Balochistan Post (TBP) reported.
Addressing the media, BYC leader Sammi Deen Baloch stated that the report is not just a list of numbers, but a record of collective suffering, injustice, and the breakdown of constitutional safeguards in Baloch society, TBP reported. She added that the findings are based on testimonies from victims' families, eyewitnesses, and local human rights organisations, which reveal an alarming increase in enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings.
According to the BYC report, 752 people were forcibly disappeared in the first half of 2025. Of these, 181 were later released, while 25 reportedly died in custody. The whereabouts of 546 individuals remain unknown. The Makran region witnessed the highest number of disappearances, with Frontier Corps (FC) personnel identified as the main perpetrators, The Balochistan Post noted.
The report also documented 117 extrajudicial killings, most of which occurred in staged encounters, custodial killings, and "kill-and-dump" operations. The majority of victims were students, activists, and politically aware youth. BYC stated these killings appear to be part of a deliberate state policy aimed at crushing political dissent in Balochistan, TBP reported.
Additionally, BYC highlighted the systematic use of torture against detainees. BYC reported signs of severe physical abuse on the bodies of those who died in custody, suggesting torture is used not only for interrogation but also to spread fear throughout Baloch communities, according to The Balochistan Post.
The report claimed that collective punishment has become normalised, with families of disappeared persons facing harassment, home raids, and assault, particularly targeting women. BYC said that children in Balochistan are growing up under constant fear and surveillance, TBP added.
The BYC also criticised the use of legal instruments, such as the Maintenance of Public Order (3MPO) and the Fourth Schedule, to target peaceful activists. The 2025 amendment to the Anti-Terrorism Act, passed by the Balochistan Assembly, was flagged for giving unchecked authority to security forces, allowing for detentions without charge for up to three months. Military officers now sit on review boards, raising serious concerns about judicial impartiality, TBP reported.
BYC warned that these laws are being weaponised against journalists, students, and human rights defenders, further eroding civil liberties in the province, The Balochistan Post stated. (ANI)