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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Shah Meer Baloch in Islamabad and Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Delhi

‘I fear they will kill me for talking’: The Pakistani poet abducted for his activism

Ahmad Farhad, his wife, Syeda Urooj Zainab, and lawyers, hold their hands up in the peace sign
Ahmad Farhad, far right, with his lawyers. Far left, his wife, Syeda Urooj Zainab, who filed a case in Islamabad’s high court accusing the security agencies of being behind the abduction. Photograph: Supplied

It was late at night in Islamabad and Ahmad Farhad was returning from a quick trip to the shops when someone walked up behind him. “Don’t be scared, don’t scream and come with us,” the figure, dressed in civilian clothes, whispered discreetly into his ear.

Still clutching bread, eggs and jam intended for the next morning’s breakfast, Farhad went to the car without a sound. With a sinking feeling the poet recognised the vehicle, with its blacked-out windows, as one known to be used by shadowy military agencies in Pakistan for abductions.

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