QUETTA: Nasibullah Achakzai, a prominent businessman and leader of the Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party in Balochistan, safely returned home on Sunday evening, a day after he was abducted by unidentified gunmen.

Mr Achakzai, who was kidnapped while travelling from Chaman to Quetta, was intercepted by armed men in Beleli, a town on the outskirts of the provincial capital. The kidnappers then forcibly took him to an undisclosed location.

After his abduction, police and other law enforcement officials initiated a comprehensive search operation, blocking several roads.

Sources close to the matter said the captors eventually released Mr Achakzai near Khezi Chowk, from where he made his way back home.

Balochistan’s caretaker information minister, Jan Achakzai, acknowledged the efforts of law enforcement agencies in securing Mr Achakzai’s safe return.

Published in Dawn, November 13th, 2023