PAKISTAN: INVESTIGATE WHEREABOUTS OF MISSING AFGHANS

Dear Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi,

I am concerned about the disappearance of two Afghan nationals: Sayed Qasim Hashemi, a journalist, and Hamed Ehsas, an artist, missing in Islamabad since July 4. According to their families, the two men left together from Section F-7 in Islamabad on the evening of July 4 and shortly became unreachable. Their phones were switched off, and the vehicle they had been using was later located in Islamabad’s D-12 area. Their families have received no clear and verifiable information about their fate and whereabouts. The police have also refused to file a First Information Report.

Sayed Qasim Hashemi and Hamed Ehsas’ families worry that their loved ones may have been forcibly disappeared by the state authorities or deported to Afghanistan, where they face considerable threats from the de-facto Taliban authorities due to their work. Both individuals were working on awareness-related work regarding the Afghanistan Security Forces prior to the Taliban’s return to power. Further, both individuals have health conditions. They fled Afghanistan immediately after the Taliban takeover in August 2021, fearing threats to their lives due to the nature of their work.

I urge you to immediately take steps to disclose the fate and whereabouts of Sayed Qasim Hashemi and Hamed Ehsas and to conduct a prompt, thorough, impartial, independent, and transparent investigation into their disappearance. I further urge you to ensure that if they are in the custody of any state authority, they are promptly granted access to their families, legal counsel, and any medical care they may require. Finally, in the absence of any criminal charge against them recognized under international law, release Sayed Qasim Hashemi and Hamed Ehsas immediately.

Yours sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]