Woman human rights defender Fozia Baloch’s brother forcibly disappeared in Karachi
On 21 April 2026, Pakistan security forces abducted Daad Shah, a writer and the brother of woman human rights defender Fozia Baloch, from their home in Karachi. The security forces did not provide a warrant or official confirmation of the abduction, and the authorities in Pakistan have not disclosed information about his fate or whereabouts. Front Line Defenders believes that Daad Shah has been forcibly disappeared in reprisal for Fozia Baloch’s human rights work.
Fozia Baloch is a woman human rights defender and a member of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), whose members face serious reprisals by state authorities, including collective punishment against family members. She has spoken out publicly against violations in Balochistan, such as extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary detention, and custodial torture of Baloch persons by security forces and intelligence agencies. Fozia Baloch has faced reprisals for her human rights work, including threats to stop her work and the targeting of her family members.
On 21 April 2026, Pakistan security forces abducted Daad Shah, a writer and the brother of woman human rights defender Fozia Baloch, from their home in Karachi. The security forces did not provide a warrant or official confirmation of the abduction, and the authorities in Pakistan have not disclosed information about his fate or whereabouts. Front Line Defenders believes that Daad Shah has been forcibly disappeared in reprisal for Fozia Baloch’s human rights work.
Fozia Baloch is a woman human rights defender and a member of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), whose members face serious reprisals by state authorities, including collective punishment against family members. She has spoken out publicly against violations in Balochistan, such as extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary detention, and custodial torture of Baloch persons by security forces and intelligence agencies. Fozia Baloch has faced reprisals for her human rights work, including threats to stop her work and the targeting of her family members.
On 21 April 2026 at approximately 18:30, Fozia Baloch’s brother Daad Shah was forcibly abducted at their home in Karachi by security officers in plainclothes. Eyewitnesses report that the officers did not provide a warrant or justification for his abduction. Since the abduction, security officers have refused to provide information regarding his whereabouts, a reason for the abduction, or official confirmation of his detention, despite public appeals for his release and information. Woman human rights defender Fozia Baloch visited the police three times and requested a formal inquiry into her brother’s abduction, but Karachi police have so far refused to register a First Information Report (FIR) of the abduction.
Daad Shah has been targeted before in reprisal for Fozia Baloch’s human rights work. He was forcibly disappeared and held in detention for 27 days in August 2023. His abduction on 21 April 2026 highlights the pattern of violence and reprisals against Baloch human rights defenders, particularly through targeting family members as collective punishment for their work.
The documented violence against human rights defenders, especially those from religious or ethnic minorities such as the Baloch, has intensified over the past years. The authorities in Pakistan appear to act with a high level of impunity against its citizens and human rights defenders. Front Line Defenders condemns the treatment of Fozia Baloch and her family, the ongoing detention of human rights defenders such as Mahrang Baloch, the cases and false charges against defenders like Sabiha Baloch, whose father was detained incommunicado for several months, and the reprisals against their lawyers Imaan Mazaari and Hadi Ali Chattha.
Front Line Defenders asserts that the aim of targeting human rights defenders and their families is not to counter terrorism or to address genuine concerns for public safety – as it is often claimed by the authorities – but to ensure that violations against defenders occur in silence, and that authorities, especially security forces and intelligence agencies, can operate with impunity.
Front Line Defenders strongly condemns the abduction and enforced disappearance of Daad Shah, as the organisation believes it is aimed at suppressing the human rights work of his sister Fozia Baloch. The nature of his abduction and the lack of information regarding his whereabouts over 24 hours after his abduction raises serious concern for his safety. Front Line Defenders is also concerned over the refusal of the Karachi police to file an FIR of his case or conduct any form of inquiry into the abduction.
Front Line Defenders calls on Pakistan authorities to:
- Immediately release Daad Shah, brother of Fozia Baloch, and share details of his whereabouts with his family members and lawyers;
- Ensure the safety of Daad Shah in detention and his access to family, lawyers, and medical treatment if necessary;
- Immediately register an FIR of his abduction, enforced disappearance, and detention, and hold those responsible accountable;
- Immediately release human rights defenders and family members currently detained under regressive counter terror and/or public order laws;
- End all reprisals against Baloch human rights defenders and their family members, and ensure that all human rights defenders in Pakistan are able to carry out their work with dignity and safety.
