Balochistan Is A 'Natural Ally Of The West'; The Baloch, Like The Kurds, Represent The Antithesis Of Jihadism

Memri

3 days ago

The Baloch have always coexisted peacefully with religious minorities and, like the Kurds, represent the antithesis of jihadism. When the British Empire pursued its divide-and-rule policy by fostering communal rifts, it triggered religious massacres involving Sikhs, Hindus, and Muslims. Balochistan, however, remained an exception, no one was killed on religious grounds by the Baloch.
Although the Baloch are predominantly Muslim, they have consistently lived in harmony with both Baloch and non-Baloch communities of diverse faiths. Karachi, now Pakistan's largest city, was once part of Balochistan and had a Baloch majority. Remarkably, the historical Bene Israel Jewish cemetery in Karachi is still protected today by a Baloch family.[1]
The Baloch people have also safeguarded ancient Hindu temples, such as the revered Hinglaj Mata shrine. In 1992, following the demolition of the Babri Masjid in India, over 30 Hindu temples were attacked in Pakistan's Sindh and Punjab provinces. Yet not a single Hindu temple was harmed in Balochistan, nor was any Hindu targeted by the Baloch.[2]
The West needs tolerant and secular nations as allies; the Baloch could be one of those allied nations.
Free Balochistan Movement (FBM) leader Hyrbyair Marri
Some Points On Economy And Oppression
The Baloch people have long endured systematic oppression at the hands of the Iranian state, often with tacit international support. Since the 1990s, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), backed by Western countries, has funneled millions of dollars into Iran under the guise of combating drug trafficking. In practice, these funds have been used to arrest and execute Baloch citizens on fabricated drug charges.
While a small number of Baloch individuals may engage in minor drug trading, often as a means of survival in a region with few economic opportunities, the major drug operations are known to involve close cooperation with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).[3]
It is a well-documented and widely accepted fact that the IRGC is deeply involved in the narcotics trade.
This raises urgent questions: Where did most of the UN's anti-drug funding actually go, and how has it been used by the Iranian authorities? Has it been used in Baloch ethnic cleansing?
Despite living in a region rich in natural resources, including gold, copper, antimony, titanium, iron ore, coal, and many rare earth elements, the Baloch population in both Iran and Pakistan.
Despite living in a region rich in five natural resources, including gold, copper, antimony, titanium, iron ore, coal, and many rare earth elements, the Baloch population in both Iran and Pakistan remains among the most economically marginalized.[4] They continue to lack access to basic infrastructure and essential services such as hospitals, schools, electricity, gas, and clean water.
See MEMRI Inquiry & Analysis Series No. 1865, Newsweek On MEMRI's Balochistan Studies Project, July 30, 2025.
Deportation Of Baloch And Denial Of Their Birth Certificates
The Iranian government is deliberately denying birth certificates to Baloch children – a systematic and calculated policy aimed at erasing their legal identity, displacing them from their ancestral homeland, and depriving them of their rightful citizenship in Balochistan. Reports indicate that recently hundreds of Baloch have been forcibly deported by Iranian occupying forces to territories under Pakistani occupation and Afghanistan. This state-engineered act of dispossession is not only a blatant violation of human rights but also an unacceptable attempt to disenfranchise an entire people.
The lack of domicile documents among deported Baloch from Iranian-occupied Balochistan is not accidental; it is the result of a deliberate strategy by Tehran to deny birth certificates at the very moment of birth, ensuring future generations are rendered stateless and voiceless on their own soil.
*Hyrbyair Marri, the head of the political platform called the Free Balochistan Movement. Follow Mr. Marri's activities on his X account, @hyrbyair_marri.