Islamabad, August 7, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
More than 1,900 cases of child abuse were reported across Pakistan during the first six months of 2026, according to a report released by child protection organisation Sahil.
The report recorded 1,914 incidents of child abuse between January and June 2026, including 49 cases of abandoned infants found on roads.
Among the reported cases, 1,015 involved child sexual abuse, while 558 cases of kidnapping, 101 cases of missing children, 98 cases of pornography linked to sexual abuse, and 35 cases of child marriages were documented.
The report compiled data from newspapers across Pakistan’s four provinces — Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh — along with reports from the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB).
Girls accounted for 58 per cent of the total victims, highlighting their continued vulnerability to abuse.
According to the report, 598 victims were aged between 11 and 15 years, 356 were between 16 and 18 years, 329 belonged to the six to 10 years age group, and 95 victims were aged between zero and five years. The ages of 487 victims were not mentioned in the available data.
The report also revealed that in 43 per cent of cases, the accused were known to the victims, while 34 per cent involved strangers. Urban areas reported 57 per cent of cases, whereas 43 per cent were recorded from rural regions.
The findings come amid continued concerns over child safety in Pakistan. In June, a three-year-old girl was found dead inside a sack near her home in Karachi’s Quaidabad area after allegedly being sexually assaulted. The child had gone missing while playing outside her house, following which her family discovered her body nearby.
Police surgeon Dr Summaiya said the child had been sexually assaulted, while the exact cause of death was to be confirmed after the chemical examination report.
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