A brutal drone strike by the Punjabi Pak Army has claimed the lives of innocent Pashtun civilians, including three young girls, in Tapi area North Waziristan, marking yet another dark chapter in the military’s targeted violence against the Pashtun community. As grieving parents mourn their children, outrage grows against the military’s use of indiscriminate force under the guise of counter-terrorism. This senseless brutality — with the Prime Minister publicly congratulating the security forces responsible — lays bare the systematic oppression the Pashtun community faces, revealing deep-seated prejudices and genocidal intentions against their people.

In the past week alone, over 10 Pashtun children, other innocent civilians and livestocks have been killed by military operations in Waziristan and nearby regions. With increased demands for accountability from the influential Pashtun jirgas, the Pakistani Army appears to be retaliating against civilians to suppress these calls, spreading terror across entire communities.

This latest tragedy is a part of an intentional strategy by Paki establishment to uproot and oppress the Pashtun population. The military has long orchestrating a campaign to forcibly depopulate these mineral-rich lands — territories predominantly owned by Pashtuns — to secure economic and strategic gains for the Paki establishment comprised of Punjabi elites. Under the guise of “security,” the Army’s presence facilitates control over these areas, enabling the proliferation of terror networks while displacing Pashtun families.

In a recent statement, the Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) claimed that the resources of Pashtun lands were part of Pakistan’s “dowry.” This remark has sparked outrage among the Pashtun community, as it is a dismissive and colonial attitude towards their rightful ownership. Pashtun activists have voiced strong opposition, asserting that their resources belong to them by ancestral right and divine provision—not as assets to be commandeered by the Punjabi Pak military elite.

The Pakistan Army has long been involved in oppressive treatment of Pashtuns, using heavy-handed tactics that disproportionately harm civilians. The Army’s brutal shelling operations in Pashtun territories routinely kill innocents, including children, destroy livestock, and damage livelihoods. Despite claims of targeting terrorists, these actions have only harmed unarmed civilians, children and their source of livelihood – livestocks.

The Army’s oppressive tactics underscore a broader pattern of using ethnic minorities, especially Pashtuns, as pawns in its military operations while subjecting them to systemic discrimination, ethnic profiling, and economic exploitation.

For decades, the Pakistan Army has monopolized resources from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, diverting wealth and opportunity away from local populations. This concentration of power and resources has left ethnic groups like the Pashtuns marginalized, deprived of their fair share, and silenced whenever they attempt to claim their rights.

Seventy-five years after Pakistan’s creation, Pashtun communities are now more vocal than ever, demanding authority over their land and resources. They insist their heritage and livelihoods are not for sale to enrich a military establishment that continues to sideline their rights.

Lawyers in POGB have united in a collective protest against a controversial land reform bill, announcing a boycott of court proceedings until November 16. This move reflects growing frustration over the bill’s potential to undermine the land ownership rights of local residents. Several bar associations, including the High Court Bar Association, the Gilgit-Baltistan Bar Council, and the Supreme Court Bar Association, have joined the boycott, citing serious concerns about the bill’s implications for the people of Pak-occupied-Gilgit-Baltistan.

The controversial land reform bill was introduced in the Provincial Assembly of Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB) earlier this month, triggering immediate opposition from local leaders. The bill proposes to transfer land rights to the PoGB government, a move that will strip local communities of their ownership over the vast majority of land, including mineral-rich territories. The bill is a direct assault on the rights of the people of Gilgit-Baltistan and will further cement Pakistan’s control over their natural resources.

Protests Erupt in POGB

The bill’s includes provisions that would give the Paki establishment’s control over 96% of the land in POGB, much of which is occupied by glaciers, rivers, and mountains. Furthermore, the bill could pave the way for the Army-state to seize control of valuable mineral resources, including 80% of the area already leased to outside entities. The exploitation of these resources by the Pakistan Army is nothing short of a colonial occupation, depriving the people of Gilgit-Baltistan of the resources and opportunities that rightfully belong to them.

The protesters are also calling attention to the deplorable state of infrastructure and basic services in the region, which remains underdeveloped despite its vast natural resources. The region has long been neglected by the Paki establishment, with the Army’s interests taking precedence over the welfare of local communities. These systemic issues are a larger pattern of exploitation, where Pakistan continues to extract resources from POGB while providing minimal support for its people.

Local leaders are demanding judicial reforms to ensure that the rights of the people are protected, as well as the implementation of the Lawyers Protection Act to safeguard legal professionals. They also raised concerns about the lack of judicial vacancies in POGB courts, particularly the Supreme Appellate Court, which has led to delays in justice for residents. The bill is a tool of further exploitation, designed to benefit the elites and military establishment at the expense of the indigenous population.

Two young Hindu Sindhi girls aged 15 and 17, Hema and Venti, were found hanging from a tree in Islamkot area of Tharparkar in Sindh Pakistan. This horrifying incident underscores the persistent insecurity faced by Hindus in Pakistan. Safety concerns for minorities have been exacerbated by systemic issues, and the fear among Hindu and Christian communities is at an all-time high.

This tragedy follows the heartbreaking suicide of Chaman Kolhi, a poor Hindu farmer in Sindh, who ended his life and that of his three children in October. Driven to despair by extreme poverty, hunger, unemployment, and enduring discrimination, Kolhi’s death reflects the unbearable conditions that Pakistan’s Hindu minority faces under Paki establishment. The increasing number of suicides among Hindu families is a stark reminder of the oppression and neglect endured by minority communities.

Minor girls and women from religious minorities such as Hindus and Christians in Pakistan live under the constant threat of violence, abduction, forced conversion, and even forced marriages. Many are subjected to physical assault, and in brutal cases, rape and murder, with perpetrators going unpunished. These systemic abuses have deep roots; following Partition, Pakistan’s national identity was forged around a narrative that emphasized its Muslim heritage, positioning itself as an Islamic republic. This shift has systematically marginalized non-Muslim communities, subjecting them to discrimination, injustice, and social exclusion.