Pak Frontier Corps (FC) forces have reportedly taken over homes, lands and even a school in Mand, a town in Pak-occupied-Balochistan’s Kech district, converting civilian spaces into fortified military checkpoints. Residents, fed up with this encroachment on their lives and properties, protested on Friday, blocking a main highway and demanding the immediate removal of the occupying forces.
FC forces launched raids on homes and lands in the Mehr area of Mand, establishing checkpoints on properties that have been in families for generations. These forceful occupations are just the latest tactic in Pakistan’s ongoing campaign to destabilize and intimidate the Baloch people, undermining their rights and stripping them of control over their own lands.
Protesters took to the streets, with men, women, and children voicing their outrage at the military’s incursion into their lives. Chanting against the occupying forces, they blocked the main road, calling on Pak authorities to end this ruthless campaign of occupation and return their homes and lands.
“Our homes are not battlefields, yet they are being taken over and transformed into military checkpoints,” a resident said. “They’ve turned our lives upside down, occupying not only our homes but our children’s school. Soldiers have set up positions on the rooftops, terrorizing children and women teachers. The sight of armed men on school buildings has sparked fear and trauma in our community.”
Baloch Lands Under Siege
Reports indicate that the military occupation is spreading to more nearby lands, further threatening the livelihood and safety of the community. In a move reflective of a colonial mindset, Pak forces have restricted residents’ access to their homes and lands, even threatening them with consequences if they dare to protest.
The people of Mand have called for urgent intervention from occupied-government bodies to free their homes and lands from military occupation. “If our demands are ignored, we will be left with no choice but to escalate our protests,” one of the community leaders said.
This occupation and conversion of civilian spaces into military checkpoints is a grim reminder of Pakistan’s ongoing campaign against POB. The Pak military’s aggressive tactics in the region are not about security—they are about control and repression. By establishing a stronghold in civilian spaces, the Pak forces are sending a chilling message to the Baloch people: that their lives, homes, and lands are no longer their own.
This unchecked occupation, targeting a vulnerable community already marginalized by decades of occupied-state neglect and oppression, highlights the pressing need for international attention and accountability. POB has been systematically stripped of its resources, silenced through enforced disappearances, and now, forced to endure the indignity of military occupation in civilian spaces.