QUETTA: The bodies of a father and his son, killed in an armed attack in Balochistan’s Qila Abdullah district, remained unburied for a fifth consecutive day on Thursday as grieving relatives and local tribesmen continued a sit-in along the Quetta-Chaman highway, demanding decisive action against Indian proxies operating in the area.
The protesters have refused to bury their loved ones until authorities take concrete measures to restore law and order, recover a kidnapped young man and end what residents describe as growing intimidation, extortion and criminal activities by armed groups.
According to the Qila Abdullah police control room, the attack took place on the night between Saturday and Sunday in Killi Tang Massezai, near Dolangi in the Gulistan tehsil, where unidentified armed men stormed a village.
Police said the attackers attempted to abduct a young man but opened fire when residents resisted, killing two people. The victims were identified as Muhammad Hanifia and his son, Muhammad Wali. The gunmen also abducted Muhammad Haider, the son of a former Levies official.
Muhammad Azam, brother of the abducted man, said five to six motorcycles carrying heavily armed men arrived at the village and attempted to force their way into their homes.
He said family members confronted the attackers, urging them not to enter homes unlawfully or harass women and children.
“Despite our resistance, the attackers persisted and opened indiscriminate fire, killing Muhammad Hanifia and Muhammad Wali,” Azam said.
He added that the gunfire spread panic across the village, forcing residents to flee their homes and seek shelter in nearby mountains, while the armed men abducted his brother along with a vehicle.
Azam further alleged that the attackers looted weapons, gold ornaments and hundreds of thousands of rupees in cash from the houses before fleeing.
Meanwhile, he said armed groups had significantly increased their activities over the past three to four months in the area bordering Afghanistan, leaving local residents increasingly fearful for their safety.
According to Azam, these groups have been forcibly collecting money from residents in the name of taxes and extortion, with their activities pushing some families to abandon their ancestral homes.
Five-day protest over worsening security
In response to the killings and abduction, relatives of the victims and members of local tribes launched a sit-in at Wal Massezai along the Quetta-Chaman highway on Sunday morning.
The protest entered its fourth day on Thursday, with demonstrators keeping the bodies at the protest site as they pressed authorities to meet their demands.
Leaders and activists from several political parties, including the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, Awami National Party, Pashtunkhwa National Awami Party and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, also joined the protest to express solidarity with the affected families.
Malik Kaleemullah Kakar, a leader of the Massezai tribe who is leading the sit-in, said the protesters were not using the bodies of their loved ones for political purposes but had been forced into an extreme measure by the deteriorating security situation.
He said residents no longer felt safe even inside their homes as armed groups continued to operate in the area, forcing people to consider leaving land inherited from their ancestors.
The protesters have put forward three key demands: the immediate recovery of the abducted Muhammad Haider, the elimination of armed groups from the area, and an end to drug cultivation and trafficking.
They say the killings, abductions and alleged extortion have turned daily life into an ordeal for residents, who are now demanding tangible action rather than assurances to restore security in the region.
