Handcuffed bodies, covered in blood lay in the dirt (Image via Views from the Sofa)

The discovery of 2 bodies around 4 days ago covered in blood and handcuffed together has raised concerns as to their identity and how they were killed. The posting by “Views from the Sofa” alleges the involvement of Karachi police and another “fake encounter” leading to their deaths though this cannot be independently confirmed. The men appear to have been targeted whilst restrained.

An increasing number of people dying in police and military custody in Pakistan (Image via Views from the Sofa)

Bodies turning up in this way is not uncommon in Pakistan though rarely investigated. Where a kill and dump occurs, the family is often too afraid to file an FIR First Investigation Report. Khan Sultan who shared the photographs claimed, “media is silent on this issue. Their crimes only this that they are lovers of islam.” There is a reluctance to report on the subject within the country for fear of reprisals against the media.

The New York Times published the following article in 2015 highlighting that,

“dozens of detainees have died in military detention in Pakistan in the past year and a half, amid accounts of torture, starvation and extrajudicial execution from former detainees, relatives and human rights monitors. The accusations come at a time when the country’s generals, armed with extensive new legal and judicial powers, have escalated their war against the Pakistan Taliban by sweeping into their strongholds and detaining hundreds of people.”

See following link,

“In Pakistan, Detainees Are Vanishing in Covert Jails”

Amina Masood Janjua campaigns for the families of missing persons in Pakistan. Her own husband was “disappeared” in 2005 whilst travelling on a bus with a friend, she stated, “in the last couple of years there is a rising trend of eliminating missing persons. Dead bodies are either thrown in gunny bags or handed over to families with threats of dire consequences if reported. That’s why it is important to build up pressure on Government of Pakistan to stop enforced disappearances.”

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights/WOT and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”. She is also a survivor of US “collateral damage”.