According to sources described as reliable, former members of Afghanistan’s security forces have been settled in large numbers across Balochistan. Reports indicate that the first camp for these personnel was established near the bypass in Dalbandin, where they were reportedly housed alongside a locally supported armed group.

Meanwhile, former Afghan security personnel were reportedly seen in large numbers alongside Pakistani forces in Nushki and Ahmad Wal, where they were allegedly involved in military operations against local communities and raids on residential homes. Similar reports have emerged from Pashtun-populated areas of Balochistan, including Kalistan, Suran and Kuchlak, where former Afghan personnel are said to have been settled. Local residents in these areas have also protested against the reported settlement.

According to local residents, some of these personnel have been involved in various criminal activities, raising concerns among the local population. Following protests, Balochistan’s Home Minister Zia Langove reportedly stated that former Afghan security personnel had been removed from Suran. However, the provincial government has yet to present a clear and comprehensive position on the matter.

Arrival of Former Afghan Personnel in Balochistan and Alleged Military Patronage

Following the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan, many senior officials from the former Afghan government and security forces relocated abroad, while a large number of lower-ranking former security personnel reportedly moved to border areas of Balochistan adjoining Afghanistan.

According to reports, Pakistani military institutions subsequently provided alleged support to these personnel to establish a force opposed to the Afghan Taliban, including arming them and allowing them freedom of movement. However, allegations have now emerged that these personnel are also being used against the ongoing Baloch national movement in Balochistan.

According to local residents, areas where former Afghan security personnel have been settled have experienced problems including theft, robbery and drug use, contributing to growing unease among local communities.

Reports also suggest that political parties in Pashtun-populated areas are being pressured to provide political support to these personnel. However, no political party has so far been confirmed to have endorsed the arrangement.

According to sources, camps housing these personnel remain in Hazarganji, an area of Quetta, the provincial capital, as well as in Kuchlak and Suran.

Abdul Rehman Khetran, a former provincial minister and member of the Balochistan Assembly affiliated with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), has said that these personnel have also been accommodated in border areas between Barkhan and Dera Bugti.

Former Afghan security personnel have also reportedly been seen alongside Pakistani forces during military operations in the Balochistan areas of Zehri, Zaidi, Sultan Shaher and Barshoki in Kharan.

Earlier this year, reports emerged that former Afghan security personnel were among those killed during an attack by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) on a hideout belonging to Shafiq Mengal, the head of an armed group described as government-backed, in Khuzdar.

It is also worth noting that before the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan, large numbers of Taliban members spent nearly two decades living as refugees in Balochistan. According to local accounts, they lived there as guests and were not used against the local population or the Baloch national movement during that period.

Alleged Recruitment of Former Afghan Personnel and Offers of Payment

According to sources, former Afghan soldiers and police officers are being offered paid positions with Pakistani institutions in Balochistan. These reports have added to allegations that personnel from Afghanistan’s former security forces are being deployed in different parts of the province.

A former Afghan soldier identified as Khan, whose real name has been withheld for security reasons, said that recruits were offered approximately 40,000 Pakistani rupees per month. According to him, the personnel were introduced to police stations in the areas where they were deployed, making it easier for them to carry weapons and pass through checkpoints.

Khan said that a former Afghan police officer had repeatedly approached him and offered him the opportunity to participate in counter-insurgency operations in Balochistan. The approaches were made both directly and through intermediaries. Khan rejected the offers and eventually moved elsewhere because the approaches continued.

These revelations come amid months of allegations by Baloch political and human rights circles that former Afghan personnel have been deployed alongside Pakistani forces in different parts of Balochistan.

Dr Mahrang Baloch, the imprisoned chief organiser of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), said in a statement issued from Hudda Jail that reports of former Afghan personnel participating in operations alongside Pakistani forces had been emerging for months. She said the reports had generated intense anger, grief and concern among the Baloch population.

She referred to accounts from Zehri and other areas. Residents of Mastung had also complained that former Afghan military personnel were occupying a school and had established a camp there with the support of the Pakistani military.

The issue was subsequently raised in the Balochistan Assembly, where Fazal Qadir Mandokhail, a member of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), questioned the presence of former Afghan soldiers in his constituency and sought an explanation from the government about why they had been brought into the area.

Mandokhail, who represents Zhob, alleged that thousands of personnel who had served under former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani were present in Balochistan.

In August, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported that former Afghan military personnel who had left Afghanistan following the Taliban’s return to power in 2021 had joined armed groups operating with the support of Pakistani military and intelligence institutions.

According to Tasnim, these groups are locally referred to as lashkars and are described in Balochistan as “death squads.” The report stated that they operate alongside Pakistani forces without being formally incorporated into state institutions.

According to the report, the former Afghan personnel’s military training, combat experience and familiarity with border operations make them attractive recruits. Financial hardship is also cited as a major reason why some have accepted such offers.

If the recruitment of former Afghan soldiers and police officers is confirmed, it could provide state-backed armed groups with a pool of experienced fighters possessing military training and combat experience. It could also reduce these groups’ reliance on recruits from the local areas in which they operate.

Baloch Political Circles Express Concern Over Historical Ties

Baloch political and human rights circles have expressed concern that the difficult circumstances facing former Afghan personnel are being exploited to recruit them for operations in Balochistan. They warn that such developments could also damage the historical relationship between the Baloch and Afghan peoples.

Mahrang Baloch has described the relationship between the Baloch and Afghans as a “historical, civilisational and human bond,” saying that the two peoples have provided refuge to one another and share experiences of war, forced displacement and repression.

She appealed to Afghanistan’s former political leadership to investigate the allegations and prevent former military personnel from participating in operations against the Baloch people.

She said, “If today your people are becoming involved in oppression and repression against the Baloch people in exchange for minor interests, privileges or refuge, then this is not only an act against the Baloch, but is also contrary to the historical traditions and dignity of the Afghan nation.”

Mahrang Baloch said that Afghans themselves had experienced war, oppression and displacement. She argued that those accepting protection or material benefits should consider the consequences of becoming involved in violence against the Baloch.

She urged Afghanistan’s former leadership to prevent former personnel from participating in what she described as the “genocide of the Baloch people.”

“History sometimes brings tests in which silence itself becomes a position,” she said.

Mahrang added, “The historical bond between the Baloch and Afghan nations is based on mutual respect, brotherhood and shared struggle. This relationship should not be sacrificed to any state project, temporary interest or provisional political arrangement.”

Balochistan National Party’s Position

The Balochistan National Party (BNP), led by former Balochistan chief minister Sardar Akhtar Mengal, stated in a central press release that former Afghan security personnel were allegedly being used by the state against the Baloch people in Balochistan, describing the development as deeply concerning and condemnable.

According to the party, using any force or group to carry out what it describes as the genocide of the Baloch people constitutes not only a grave violation of human rights but also an act that undermines the historical and human ties between the Baloch and Afghan peoples.

The press release stated that the Baloch and Afghan peoples have historically maintained fraternal relations. During difficult periods, their leaders and communities have supported one another and provided mutual assistance at different points in history.

However, according to the party, former Afghan security personnel are now allegedly being used against the Baloch people in Balochistan, contributing to what it describes as an ongoing campaign of oppression, repression and bloodshed.

Baloch political parties have appealed to Afghan leaders, elders and responsible members of Afghan society to refrain from participating in any actions against the Baloch people that could facilitate genocide or further human rights abuses.

According to these political circles, the centuries-old relationship between the Baloch and Afghan peoples is founded on mutual respect, cooperation, humanitarian solidarity and a tradition of sharing each other’s hardships. They argue that these historic bonds should not be sacrificed for political objectives, the use of force or bloodshed.