Washington, November 14 (Yes Punjab News)
A group of 31 international human rights organisations, including Freedom House, has called for the immediate and unconditional release of Pashtun human rights defender Idris Khattak, who has been detained in Pakistan since November 13, 2019, over his human rights work.
The joint statement was issued on the seventh anniversary of Khattak’s detention. Signatories include the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Front Line Defenders, Physicians for Human Rights and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).
The organisations said Khattak had spent decades documenting human rights abuses, including enforced disappearances, in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas. He was abducted on November 13, 2019, and his family remained unaware of his whereabouts for seven months.
Pakistani authorities acknowledged in June 2020 that Khattak was in the custody of the country’s military intelligence service. In late 2021, a military court convicted him of violating the Official Secrets Act and sentenced him to 14 years in prison.
The organisations alleged that his trial involved serious violations of due process, including being held in secret, denial of access to legal counsel, the use of a forced confession and secret evidence, and restrictions on presenting key defence witnesses.
They also expressed concern over the denial of adequate medical care, including treatment for diabetes, saying his health had deteriorated significantly. The statement said Pakistani authorities continued to deny him an independent medical examination and appropriate medication and treatment, despite concerns raised by UN experts in April.
The organisations urged democratic governments to press Pakistan for Khattak’s release and called for withholding benefits linked to human rights standards, including participation in the European Union’s GSP+ trade programme, until detained human rights defenders such as Khattak are released.
In November 2025, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that Khattak had been arbitrarily detained, including in violation of his freedom of expression.
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