Two young men shot dead by alleged government-backed death squad in Balochistan's Khuzdar

Balochistan [Pakistan], August 25 : A young man previously subjected to enforced disappearances was allegedly shot dead along with his cousin by the government-backed death squad in Balochistan's Khuzdar district on Friday, claims the Balochistan Post.

As per media reports, 29-year-old Naeem Shay, son of Shay Mohammad and a resident of Tehsil Gresha, was killed alongside his cousin, 19-year-old Iqbal Hakeem, in the Gresha Nadagi area.

Both the deceased were on their way to visit relatives when they were intercepted by members of a government-backed militia, locally referred to as a "death squad", and shot dead on the spot, says the Balochistan Post.

Naeem had previously been forcibly disappeared in 2022, when he was detained along with his father, brother, and three other relatives by Pakistani armed forces and intelligence agencies. The family members were released several months later, as per the Balochistan Post.

His cousin, Iqbal Hakeem, was a second-semester student in the BA Education Department at the University of Karachi. Activists stated that he had long been subjected to harassment and surveillance by the same groups, and had been forced to abandon his studies due to ongoing threats, the Balochistan Post said.

As per the Balochistan Post, rights groups and local activists described the killings as part of a broader pattern of extrajudicial violence in Balochistan. They said that enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings of Baloch youth have become an ongoing issue in the region.

The Balochistan Post also reported that unidentified assailants attacked the house of a man named Peer Bakhsh in the Buleda area of Kech district. The Balochistan Post, citing local sources, said that the attackers were allegedly members of the death squad who came on motorcycles and threw a bomb inside the house.

Earlier this month, a similar grenade attack in Turbat injured several women. Other attacks on homes have also been reported in Tump and neighbouring areas, the Balochistan Post claimed.

Human rights groups and activists have repeatedly accused Pakistani security forces of backing armed militias, locally referred to as "death squads," to crush the independence movement and silence dissent in Balochistan. Pakistani authorities deny these allegations, as per the Balochistan Post.

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