Up next: A mission to a metal world.🤘
We’re kicking off the #NASASocial for the #MissionToPsyche. It's set to launch from @NASAKennedy to a metal-rich asteroid.
Seventeen years ago today, Zakir Majeed was disappeared.
There are people in Balochistan today who are younger than his absence.
They have grown up seeing his face on posters, at protest camps, in the hands of a family that has had to keep proving, year after year, that he existed, that he was loved, that he was taken, that someone must know where he is.
Seventeen years is not a number. It is hair turning white. It is a mother learning the sound of every knock and still looking toward the door. It is Eid after Eid with one place in the house that no one knows how to fill. It is a family forced to live beside an unfinished sentence.
Today, on Baloch Missing Persons Day, we remember Zakir Majeed and all those whose names have been dragged through years of silence. But remembrance is not enough when a person has been missing long enough for a generation to inherit his absence.
Where is Zakir Majeed?
Seventeen years later, that question remains exactly where his family first placed it: before the authorities, before the courts, before the conscience of a country that has learned to scroll past the disappeared.
A disappearance does not end because the public gets tired of hearing about it or because the state has decided to alter its own narrative on ‘missing persons’ again.
It ends when the truth is returned. At this point, most are only asking for the indication of their loved ones’ graves.
#BalochMissingPersonsDay
#ReleaseZakirMajeed
بعض ریاستی نمائندے اور بلوچستان اسمبلی کے چند اراکین کی جانب سے میرے، میرے ساتھیوں اور بلوچ یکجہتی کمیٹی (BYC) کے خلاف لگائے گئے حالیہ الزامات نہ صرف بے بنیاد ہیں بلکہ بلوچستان میں پرامن سیاسی جدوجہد کو بدنام کرنے کی ایک واضح اور منظم کوشش کا حصہ ہیں۔ یہ الزامات ایسی فضا پیدا کرنے کے لیے استعمال کیے جا رہے ہیں جہاں سیاسی اختلاف کو جرم اور انسانی حقوق کے مطالبے کو ریاست دشمنی قرار دیا جائے۔
The reported enforced disappearance of Mehrab Khalid Baloch raises serious concerns about human rights, freedom of expression, and the safety of students and artists. Every person has the right to due process and protection under the law.
We call for transparency, accountability, and his safe recovery.
#MehrabKhalidBaloch #HumanRights #EndEnforcedDisappearances #JusticeForMehrab #FreedomOfExpression #StudentsRights #ArtistsForJustice #DHRPK
بلوچ نوجوان جب ریاستی زندانوں سے لوٹتے ہیں تو ان کے خاندان اور محلے والے جشن منا کر گھر لاتے ہیں لیکن جب ریاستی اہلکار ان کو جبری گمشدہ کرتے ہیں تو ان کے اٹھائے جانے سے لے کر رہا ہونے تک وہ ان جیسے نہیں رہتے۔ ان کے زہن اور جسم دوبارہ جبری گمشدگی کے پہلے سی زندگی جیسے نہیں ہوتے۔
اور یہ سب بڑا جرم ہے جو ریاست کرتی ہے، انسان کو لوٹا تو دیتی ہے لیکن اس انسان سمیت اس کے خاندان اور محلے والوں کو اس ازیت میں مبتلا کرتی ہے جسے چاہ کر بھی وہ ساری عمر نہیں مٹا سکتے۔
ہم نے جبری گمشدگی سے لے کر رہائی تک، نہ جانے کئی لوگ کھوئے ہیں، وہ جسمانی طور پر تو شاید کوٹ آتے ہیں لیکن لوٹتے پھر کبھی نہیں ہیں۔۔۔
PAANK expresses grave concern over the continued enforced disappearance of Mehrab Khalid. His whereabouts remain unknown, causing immense distress and uncertainty for his family.
PAANK stands in solidarity with his family and urges all relevant authorities to uphold the rule of law and protect fundamental human rights.
#ReleaseMehrabKhalid
#EndEnforcedDisappearances
Mehrab submitted a signed affidavit to his college stating he would clear dues for his two semesters by June 5.He decided to remain in Lahore & didn't go home for Eid so he could work there in order to arrange money required to pay his fees.But authorities decided to abduct him:)
دنیا بھر سمیت پاکستان میں تمام اقوام آج عید کا پرمسرت دن اپنے لوگوں کے ساتھ خوشیوں سے منایا جارہا ہے، مگر بلوچستان کا المیہ یہ ہے کہ اس دن بھی ہمارے دہائیوں سے جبری گمشدہ لوگ لوٹ کر نہیں آتے، بلکہ مزید ہمارے لوگوں کی جبری گمشدگیوں کی خبریں سامنے آتی ہیں۔
I am deeply disturbed by the conduct of Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti against the PhD holders and the broader intellectual community of Balochistan.
Time and again, we are observing attempts to intimidate and silence Balochistan’s critical voices, whether they are journalists, writers, activists, poets, linguists, or now PhD scholars. This pattern of threatening the intellectual class is deeply concerning and unacceptable in any democratic society.
Criticism, accountability, and questioning government performance are cornerstones of every functioning society. If a PhD scholar has written a critique or raised questions about governance, it falls within their right to free expression and academic freedom. No public office holder has the authority to threaten, intimidate, or mobilize media pressure against such voices.
Sarfaraz Bugti must retract his remarks and refrain from targeting our intelligentsia for exercising their democratic and academic rights.
We are deeply disturbed by this approach and urge the leadership of the PPP to take immediate notice of these actions and ensure that no attempt is made to silence or intimidate Balochistan’s intellectual community through their backed Chief Minister. @MediaCellPPP@PPP_Org@FarhatullahB@sherryrehman@BBhuttoZardari
The murder of Baloch intellectuals is not just an unfortunate outcome of conflict. It is deliberate & systematic. Professor Ghamkhar Hayat is only the latest in a long line. Thoughts & prayers for his loved ones & students.
I am deeply troubled by the recent attacks targeting members of the Baloch intelligentsia. On Saturday in Nushki, prominent Baloch scholar, poet and intellectual Ghamkawar Hayat was killed in a target killing. The earlier abduction of the Vice Chancellor and Pro Vice Chancellor of the University of Gwadar, both respected scholars and intellectuals, has further deepened concerns about the safety of academics and independent thinkers in Baloch society.
The continued targeting of scholars, educators, and intellectual voices is alarming and will have serious consequences for the social and intellectual future of our society. At this critical moment, Baloch across all political and ideological differences should come together to protect education, dialogue, and the individuals who contribute to the growth and awareness of our society.
My heartfelt condolences and prayers are with the family of Ghamkawar Hayat. I also appeal for the safe and respectful release of the Vice Chancellor and Pro Vice Chancellor of the University of Gwadar, with dignity and without harm.
The recent wave of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and forced press conferences in Balochistan is deeply alarming. The space for peaceful political expression and human rights advocacy is shrinking day by day, while those demanding justice are continuously being silenced through intimidation and fear.
Every human being has the right to raise their voice against injustice and human rights violations. But when peaceful platforms are targeted by the Pakistani state, what options are left for the people? Where should families go when the judicial system and state institutions fail to protect the oppressed, and instead remain silent over the suffering of the Baloch people?
Nizar Marri Baloch, a human rights defender and member of BYC, was forcibly disappeared, and to this day there is no information about his whereabouts.
Zeeshan Zaheer Baloch, whose father, Zaheer Ahmed, has been forcibly disappeared since April 13, 2015, grew up carrying the burden of enforced disappearance within his own family. Instead of receiving justice, Zeeshan himself was killed on June 29, 2025. His family, already shattered by years of suffering, continues to face harassment and pressure. Recently, his sister, Adeeba Baloch, was forced into a press conference to publicly distance herself from the BYC. Such actions reflect the extent to which families are being targeted and psychologically tortured.
Fozia Baloch, an active member of the BYC who has consistently stood against injustice, is also being targeted repeatedly. Her brother, writer Daad Shah, was forcibly taken by state agencies on April 21, 2026, from their home. When Fozia demanded justice and raised her voice for her brother, she and her family were dragged, detained, and later released. The message being sent is clear: even demanding basic human rights has become dangerous in Balochistan.
These new tactics of harassing the families of BYC members, disappearing peaceful activists, and killing people in broad daylight expose the harsh reality in Balochistan today. Peaceful activism is being criminalized, while those responsible continue to operate without accountability. The state itself is creating narratives to suppress dissent and silence every voice demanding justice.
We want to make it absolutely clear: BYC was peaceful, BYC is peaceful, and BYC will continue to peacefully raise its voice against oppression, enforced disappearances, and human rights violations in Balochistan.
I urge all human rights organizations and international institutions to take serious notice of the ongoing situation in Balochistan and hold Pakistan accountable for the continued targeting of peaceful activists and the ongoing human rights crisis in Balochistan.
Dr Mahrang Baloch
Hudda jail
13 May 2026