Victims of gruesome Chagai executions ‘identified as Afghans’

The bodies of five men, which were found hanging from electricity poles in Dalbandin town of Chagai district a day earlier, were identified on Saturday. However, no one has claimed responsibility for the killings so far.

“All five victims are Afghan nationals and re­­sidents of Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan,” Muham­mad Jawad, an official from the Shah Fahad Bin Sultan Hospital, told Dawn, adding that the bodies were identified with the help of Muhammad Yahya, a resident of Girdi Jangle, an Afghan refugee camp in Chagai district, who visited the hospital where the bodies were kept.

The deceased were identified as Rozi Khan, Rehmat Ullah, Sami Ullah, Agha Wali, and Sardar Wali.The bodies were shifted to Quetta.

Police investigating the killings suspect that the five victims may be the same group who appeared in a viral video on social media, making confessio­nal statements about the murder of Murad Note­zai, a prominent leader of the Iran-based banned militant organisation Jaish al-Adl.

The militant group, which operates in the Sis­tan-Baluchestan region of Iran, may have kidnap­ped and executed these people, possibly in retaliation for the killing of their leader, sources said.

However, officials and independent sources have yet to confirm whether the bodies found are of the same individuals who appeared in the video, or if they are unrelated individuals killed due to personal vendettas.

“We are investigating the incident to determine whether the deceased are the same individuals who made confessional statements in the video or if they are unrelated individuals,” a senior police officer said.

According to SSP Chagai, the individuals had been missing for several months, and a video confession also surfaced after their abduction, in which they confessed to killing a Pakistani tribal person.

The police have confirmed that the bodies have been handed over to the heirs.

Yesterday, in a shocking turn of event, police on Friday recovered five bullet-riddled bodies in Chagai, Balochistan.

Police officials said that five unidentified bodies were recovered from Dalbadin’s Sorgal area. The bodies were moved to the hospital by police and rescue team for legal formalities.

Last year, bullet-riddled bodies of three men were discovered by the police in the Bolan district of Balochistan.

According to police, three bodies were found in Qaboi, a tourist place in Machh, Balochistan. The identification of the bodies could not be ascertained as per initial reports.

SHO Machh police said the deceased were residents of Mangchar.