QUETTA: In a devastating turn of events, Banari Baloch, the 17-year-old niece of Baloch activist Mahal Baloch, has shared a heart-wrenching account of the harassment her family has faced at the hands of authorities.
In a series of emotional posts on X (formerly Twitter), Banari revealed that their home was raided once more by unknown men on the morning of November 18th, 2025, echoing a similar incident that occurred in February 2023. The latest raid has further escalated the mental and emotional toll on Banari and her family, who have been subjected to continuous intimidation.
Banari’s posts described how, once again, unknown armed men entered their home without any legal documentation, search warrants, or formal notice. The men also failed to adhere to legal requirements, such as bringing female officers when conducting a search involving women. The trauma from this latest raid, Banari said, has deeply affected both her and her mother’s mental health, leaving them struggling to cope with constant fear and uncertainty.
Banari wrote:
“On November 18th, around 3:30 a.m., our house was raided once more. They brought no search warrant, no written notice, and no female officers, which is required by law when entering a home with women present. They threatened my mother, searched through our phones, and traced our numbers before leaving around 7:40 a.m. After that night, they began texting me directly, saying they were watching us and would soon call us in for an ‘inquiry’—again, without any formal notice.”
She said that these actions have devastated not only her own but also her mother’s mental health. “I am 17 years old, trying to finish my studies, yet living under constant fear has made it nearly impossible to focus or live normally,” she added.
The raid marks the latest chapter in a relentless campaign against Banari’s family, and particularly her aunt, Mahal Baloch, who has faced repeated harassment and legal challenges due to her activism. The family’s ordeal began in February 2023, when a similar raid took place.
The Beginning of the Ordeal: February 2023
The first traumatic event occurred on the night of February 18th, 2023, when a group of men, claiming to be from the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD), arrived at Banari’s home in the middle of the night. With no prior notice, arrest warrants, or legal justification, they forcibly entered the house and began their search. Banari, just 15 years old at the time, described the terror they experienced as they were taken into custody.
“They didn’t explain why we were being arrested. They just took us,” Banari recalled.
The family—Banari, her aunt Mahal Baloch, Mahal’s two daughters, her grandmother, Mahal’s mother, and a young guest—were all detained without cause and taken to a local police station. They were locked in separate rooms, with Mahal being subjected to violent treatment. The family was held overnight without any explanation and was released the next morning, told to remain silent about their ordeal.
“They told us not to tell anyone what had happened—but how could we stay silent after what they did to us?” Banari said.
Fighting Back: Legal Battles and Media Trials
Upon returning home, Banari and her family refused to remain silent. They began speaking out, holding press conferences, attending protests, and raising awareness about Mahal’s unlawful detention. The authorities, initially refusing to provide any legal justification for the arrest, were forced to register an FIR against Mahal after sustained media attention and public outcry.
After three months of legal hearings, appeals, and public pressure, Mahal was granted bail. However, the family’s legal nightmare was far from over. Just months later, the authorities escalated their persecution, adding Banari’s mother to the same case and forcing her into a prolonged legal struggle that has now dragged on for over three years.
At the end of her post, she appealed for support. “I am speaking out publicly now because no one deserves to live like this. Please, even the smallest support or awareness of our situation can make a difference for my mother and me,” she concluded.
It is pertinent to mention that human rights groups accused the authorities of subjecting Mahal Baloch to a media trial, forcing her to publicly confess to being a “suicide bomber”—an accusation that was entirely false and designed to tarnish her reputation and criminalize her activism.
