London, UK — December 14, 2025: The Baloch Advocacy and Studies Centre (BASC) hosted an online webinar on December 13 that outlined severe human rights violations affecting Baloch communities in Iran and Pakistan, the organisation said in a press release.
The virtual panel gathered international experts, scholars and Baloch advocates to examine enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, systemic discrimination and the gendered impacts of state repression. Speakers included Mohammed Al-Obaidi of the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID); Raha Bahreini, Iran researcher at Amnesty International; Dr. Sabiha Baloch, leader of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC); Abdollah Aref, lead Iran researcher at BASC; Mohsen Burhanzehi, BASC director of media and communications; and Aisha Baloch, BASC research associate. Qambar Malik Baloch, BASC general secretary, moderated the session.
Dr. Sabiha Baloch described systematic and complex rights violations in Pakistan’s Balochistan, including widespread enforced disappearances, a rise in targeting of Baloch women, extrajudicial killings, and sustained harassment of human rights defenders and their families. Aisha Baloch presented BASC research documenting state violence and collective punishment directed at Baloch communities across Pakistan.
Mohammed Al-Obaidi condemned enforced disappearances, expressed solidarity with victims and families, and urged that cases be brought to the attention of the WGEID. He said the Working Group has repeatedly raised concerns with Pakistani authorities and called for an end to disappearances and for full compliance with international obligations.
On conditions in Iran, Mohsen Burhanzehi highlighted entrenched structural discrimination that disproportionately harms Baloch women and children. He noted many Baloch lack identity documentation and are consequently denied access to healthcare, education and other essential public services. Abdollah Aref outlined patterns in Iranian Balochistan including disproportionate use of the death penalty, arbitrary detentions, and repeated targeting of Sokhtbars—fuel carriers who risk their lives due to poverty and are often criminalised or subjected to lethal force.
Raha Bahreini described Balochistan as among Iran’s poorest regions, attributing persistent deprivation to discrimination and state neglect. She drew attention to unlawful use of lethal force, frequent death sentences, and failures to protect life-sustaining rights that keep Baloch populations in continual peril.
Closing the event, Qambar Malik Baloch said BASC will continue working with international experts and researchers to raise awareness and press for action to alleviate the hardships faced by the Baloch people, the organisation’s release added.
