In Balochistan, Families Not Allowed Into Morgues. Then Bodies Disappear

Amid a spike in abductions and enforced disappearances of Baloch nationals, morgues have been kept out of bounds for local residents who live in fear and uncertainty of their loved ones who are missing.

As bodies lined up over the past week, locals were demanding security agencies to allow them to visit morgues to identify if their missing family members were among those dead. But that was reportedly denied by the Pakistani establishment.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee, a human rights organisation, has been protesting the gross violation of human rights by Pakistan's military in the war-ravaged region. But they too are facing a crackdown.

After days of protest over "enforced disappearances" of Balochis and for not being allowed to visit morgues as bodies piled up, protesters and local residents reportedly barged into the Civil Hospital in Balochistan's capital city Quetta. As per local reports, several corpses were taken away by them.

It is not yet known, if these bodies were taken away after identification or not.

The Pakistan Army says the bodies at the morgue were of members of the militant organisation Baloch Liberation Army, which has been carrying out an armed rebellion against Pakistan for its "illegal occupation" of Balochistan.

The BLA had taken an entire train - Jaffar Express - hostage earlier this month, before reportedly releasing women, children, and Baloch passengers, keeping mostly personnel of the Pakistani security forces hostage. Pakistan's Army had launched a military offensive against them.

To get back the corpses, Pakistan's security agencies launched a search operation. Raids have been carried out in Sariab Road and Secretariat Chowk areas in Quetta. Three bodies have reportedly been recovered and several people have been arrested.

"Corpses that were taken away were the unidentified bodies of militants who were killed in the military operation following the attack on the Jaffar Express," said a government official.

Activists of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee also confirmed the incident, saying some of the protesters, which included family members of missing persons, had taken away a number of bodies. "We had been trying to gain access to the morgue for two days to satisfy the missing persons' family members that the bodies kept there were not of their loved ones," said a BYC member.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee, led by rights activist Mahrang Baloch, is now under Pak spy agency ISI's scanner.