...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it...
(in the southwestern part of Pakistain) has experienced yet another insurgency, with the appearance of a series of gun and grenade attacks that have left more than 50 people dead. In a rare admission, Pakistain's Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said the Pakistain army is "handicapped" in its fight against Baloch rebels.
On February 1, a series of gun and kabooms across Balochistan province killed 31 civilians and 17 security service personnel, according to the region's Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) rebel group stated that it was behind the attacks, and they claimed that dozens of soldiers were killed.
In response, Pakistain's Security Forces killed at least 145 rebels during a 40-hour shootout, Minister Bugti said.
This marks an escalation of violence in the impoverished but resource-rich province, where Pakistain's government has been battling an ethnic insurgency for decades.
Based on 2025 reports, armed separatist groups in Balochistan — most notably the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and its allies under the Baloch Raaji Aajoi Sangar (BRAS) alliance — have escalated their tactics from hit-and-run attacks to temporarily seizing control of towns, infrastructure, and sections of highways. This suggests that the Mighty Pak Army is unable to establish a presence in Balochistan.
The Baloch people are an ethno-linguistic group spread between Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistain. Throughout history, they have experienced marginalization within their respective countries. Balochistan comprises approximately 44% of Pakistain’s territory. It stands as the country’s richest, yet most underdeveloped, region.
During the partition of India, Balochistan (specifically the princely State of Kalat) declared independence in 1947. The Baloch briefly held independence from Aug. 15, 1947, to March 27, 1948, rather than joining the new dominion of Pakistain. The Khan of Kalat insisted on illusory sovereignty based on a 1876 treaty, but ultimately acceded to Pakistain under military pressure. Later, the Mighty Pak Army invaded the area, leading to the forced accession of Kalat on March 27, 1948, which the Baloch consider an illegal annexation. The forced merger ignited the first of several armed insurgencies, as many felt betrayed by the forced (rather than voluntary) incorporation into Pakistain.
What followed was decades of severe human rights
...which are usually open to widely divergent definitions...
violations, the systemic exploitation of local natural resources, political repression, a lack of autonomy, and conflict with Pakistain's armed forces.
This situation has fueled ethnic discontent and severe anger against the Pak government. Local Baloch activists state that Pakistain's government keeps them poor while looting regional wealth. In response, instead of recognizing the Baloch right to self-rule, Pakistain's security establishment
Tens of thousands of ethnic Baloch people, including students, activists, and professionals, have been subjected to enforced disappearances by Pak security forces throughout the last two decades. The victims are frequently denied access to legal representation, held incommunicado, and subjected to torture, inhumane treatment, or even extrajudicial execution. Although some return after years, they are traumatized and broken. Many never return. Others are found in unmarked graves, their bodies so disfigured that they cannot be identified.
The Pak government has historically denied these allegations, often claiming that some of the missing have joined bully boy separatist groups or fled the country.
In response, families frequently protest in major cities like Islamabad, enduring harsh conditions to demand the safe return of their loved ones.
During a demonstration held in London on January 3, "speakers from the Baloch National Movement (BNM) questioned Pakistain’s claim over Balochistan and criticized the role of Pakistain’s parliament, asserting that it does not represent the Baloch people," the Balochistan Post reported.
They alleged that parliamentary power was dominated by Punjab
...1. Little Orphan Annie's bodyguard
2. A province of Pakistain ruled by one of the Sharif brothers
3. A province of India. It is majority (60 percent) Sikh and Hindoo (37 percent), which means it has relatively few Moslem riots
....
[Pakistain's majority ethnic group] and described Balochistan as an occupied territory under what they termed a 'colonial-style control by the Punjabi military.' The BNM further claimed that the government in Balochistan was a puppet administration with no public credibility or authority, arguing that there was no hope of ending alleged abuses against the Baloch people within Pakistain’s existing political system.
Demonstrators said that enforced disappearances and the practice of collective punishment continue unabated in Balochistan. During the protest, speakers demanded the immediate recovery of Mahjabeen Baloch, Nasreena Baloch, Farzana Baloch, Hani Baloch and Hair Nisa Baloch, whom the BNM claims were taken into custody by Pak forces from different parts of Balochistan and subsequently forcibly disappeared. The speakers described these actions as among the harshest tactics employed by the state to suppress the Baloch freedom movement.
Speakers urged international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, to increase pressure on Pakistain and to investigate what they described as serious human rights violations in Balochistan. The BNM termed recent developments in Balochistan a 'new moral low' in the ongoing conflict in the region.
...1. Little Orphan Annie's bodyguard2. A province of Pakistain ruled by one of the Sharif brothers
3. A province of India. It is majority (60 percent) Sikh and Hindoo (37 percent), which means it has relatively few Moslem riots
....
[Pakistain's majority ethnic group] and described Balochistan as an occupied territory under what they termed a 'colonial-style control by the Punjabi military.' The BNM further claimed that the government in Balochistan was a puppet administration with no public credibility or authority, arguing that there was no hope of ending alleged abuses against the Baloch people within Pakistain’s existing political system.
Demonstrators said that enforced disappearances and the practice of collective punishment continue unabated in Balochistan. During the protest, speakers demanded the immediate recovery of Mahjabeen Baloch, Nasreena Baloch, Farzana Baloch, Hani Baloch and Hair Nisa Baloch, whom the BNM claims were taken into custody by Pak forces from different parts of Balochistan and subsequently forcibly disappeared. The speakers described these actions as among the harshest tactics employed by the state to suppress the Baloch freedom movement.
Speakers urged international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, to increase pressure on Pakistain and to investigate what they described as serious human rights violations in Balochistan. The BNM termed recent developments in Balochistan a 'new moral low' in the ongoing conflict in the region.
In 2023, the Association MIMAN, a nongovernmental organization in special consultative status to the UN, submitted the following written statement to the UN Secretary-General:
Many of the forcibly disappeared Balochs particularly students have been killed and dumped by personnel of Pak secretive agencies accompanied by personnel of Pak Army or Frontier Corps
...a provincial paramilitary force. Total manpower is about 80,000. They are tasked to help local law enforcement in the maintenance of law and order, and to carry out border patrol and a..the Antwerp-based Salafist organization that had campaigned to introduce Sharia law to Belgium before single-handedly making Belgium the highest per capita supplier of jihadis to Syria in Europe. There was a big trial in Antwerp in 2015, but most of those convicted were in absentia...nti-smuggling operations....
, whereas thousands are still believed to be languishing in Pak torture cells.
The alarming lack of accountability for enforced disappearances in Balochistan underscores a deeply troubling culture of impunity. Families' relentless efforts to seek justice are met with indifference, misinformation, or outright denial by authorities. This erodes trust in the justice system and perpetuates a cycle of fear, silence, and helplessness among the Baloch population.
The persistent enforced disappearances in Balochistan pose a significant threat to regional stability and peace. The anguish caused by these disappearances fosters a sense of injustice and resentment, which can fuel extremism and violence. The region's already fragile socio-political fabric is further strained, potentially destabilizing neighboring areas and endangering the broader peace in the region.
...a provincial paramilitary force. Total manpower is about 80,000. They are tasked to help local law enforcement in the maintenance of law and order, and to carry out border patrol and a..the Antwerp-based Salafist organization that had campaigned to introduce Sharia law to Belgium before single-handedly making Belgium the highest per capita supplier of jihadis to Syria in Europe. There was a big trial in Antwerp in 2015, but most of those convicted were in absentia...nti-smuggling operations....
, whereas thousands are still believed to be languishing in Pak torture cells.
The alarming lack of accountability for enforced disappearances in Balochistan underscores a deeply troubling culture of impunity. Families' relentless efforts to seek justice are met with indifference, misinformation, or outright denial by authorities. This erodes trust in the justice system and perpetuates a cycle of fear, silence, and helplessness among the Baloch population.
The persistent enforced disappearances in Balochistan pose a significant threat to regional stability and peace. The anguish caused by these disappearances fosters a sense of injustice and resentment, which can fuel extremism and violence. The region's already fragile socio-political fabric is further strained, potentially destabilizing neighboring areas and endangering the broader peace in the region.
The Mighty Pak Army appears to be only interested in securing its economic interests and continuing its crackdown on activists who request an end to human rights abuses and greater political autonomy. However,
the hip bone's connected to the leg bone...
Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir refuses to claim responsibility for Pakistain's failed Baloch policy.
On the contrary, in November 2025, Pakistain's parliament voted to give army chief Munir new powers and lifetime immunity from arrest and prosecution, a move that critics say paves the way towards autocracy. His field marshal title and uniform are for life, and he will be given "responsibilities and duties" even after retirement, determined by the president with the advice of the prime minister. The expectation is that this will give him a prominent role in public life for as long as he is alive.