GWADAR: The vice chancellor and pro-vice chancellor of the University of Gwadar, another university emp­loyee and their driver returned home safely on Sunday, around 10 days after they went missing, an official told Dawn.

“All four, including the vice chancellor and pro-vice chancellor, have rea­ched their homes safely,” Babar Yousafzai, an official at the Balochistan Home Department, confirmed to Dawn.

Mullah Barkat Baloch, a relative of Pro-VC Syed Manzoor Ahmed, also confirmed that the university official had reached home safely.

Sources in Mastung police told Dawn that Vice Chancellor Dr Abdul Razzaq Sabir, Pro-Vice Chancellor Syed Manzoor Ahmed, the VC’s staff officer Irshad Ahmed and their driver, Hatim Ali, were freed in the Kardgap area of Mastung.

The university officials and their driver went missing while travelling from Gwadar to Quetta on May 13.

Their mobile phones had been switched off and they could not be traced, and police officials believed they may have been kidnapped.

Later, security forces launched an intelligence-based search operation and raided various suspected locations for the safe recovery of the university officials and the driver.

The incident had spa­r­ked concern among acade­mic circles in Balochistan. Faculty members and employees of several universities in the province observed a black day last week and demanded the immediate and safe recovery of the missing officials.

University teachers and employees had also expr­e­s­sed concern over growing incidents of kidnapping and targeted killing of educationists in the province and urged the government to ensure the security of academic institutions and staff.

With input from Saleem Shahid in Quetta

Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2026