From Zaheer to Zeeshan: Adeeba Baloch's family destroyed by state violence as Sammi Deen calls Pakistan a rogue regime

Balochistan [Pakistan], June 30 (ANI): Adeeba Baloch, daughter of forcibly disappeared Baloch activist Zaheer Baloch, staged a late-night sit-in protest on Panjgur's CPEC Road on Sunday, demanding the safe release of her younger brother, Zeeshan Baloch, who was abducted by a state-backed death squad on June 29, 2025, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) reported in a post on X.

According to BYC, Zeeshan Baloch, who had been at the forefront of the peaceful campaign to recover his father, Zaheer, who disappeared by Pakistani forces on April 13, 2015, was forcibly taken from Football Chowk, Panjgur, on Saturday night. The family, already subjected to threats due to their activism, is now reeling from the disappearance of another member.

Sammi Deen Baloch, a leading Baloch human rights advocate, also posted on X. "Adeeba Zaheer, the daughter of Zaheer Baloch, is once again facing the cruelty of state repression. Her younger brother, Zeeshan Zaheer, was forcibly disappeared yesterday by state intelligence agencies," she said.

Both BYC and Sammi Deen Baloch noted that the family's campaign has always been peaceful, relying on sit-ins, rallies, and appeals to human rights bodies. Despite these nonviolent efforts, the state responded not with justice but with further repression.

Tragically, on the morning of June 30, Zeeshan's bullet-riddled and tortured body was found dumped in Panjgur, according to Sammi Deen Baloch's X post. His murder marks another grim chapter in the ongoing cycle of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Balochistan.

The BYC condemned the killing and demanded immediate accountability. "This is not just a personal tragedy but a reflection of systematic targeting of Baloch families seeking justice," BYC wrote on X.

Balochistan has long been plagued by human rights abuses, marked by ongoing violence involving separatist groups, a heavy military presence, enforced disappearances, and economic neglect.

Both BYC and Sammi Deen Baloch called upon international human rights organisations and civil society to speak out and pressure the Pakistani state to end the practice of enforced disappearances. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)