Pakistani journalist killed in police taking pictures in Kenya

A widely known Pakistani journalist, Arshad Sharif, was shot lifeless in Kenya when police looking automobile thieves opened hearth on the car he was travelling in because it drove by means of their roadblock with out stopping, in keeping with a Kenyan police report on Monday.

A Kenyan police watchdog has stated it’s investigating the incident, which occurred at 10 pm on Sunday night on the outskirts of the capital, Nairobi.

A senior police officer informed The Star, a Kenyan newspaper, that the taking pictures was being handled as a case of mistaken id. The circumstances of Sharif’s demise sparked widespread outrage in Pakistan and requires an investigation.

Sharif labored for a few years as a chief time tv information present host for ARY News in Pakistan and had just lately fled the nation citing threats to his life. It was not instantly clear when he had arrived in Kenya.

The police report stated a relative of Sharif had been driving the automobile. It stated police had shaped the roadblock by putting small stones throughout the street, however the automobile drove by means of with out stopping, even after officers opened hearth. Nine bullets hit the automobile, and one hit Sharif within the head.

Kenya’s Independent Police Oversight Authority (IPOA), a civilian watchdog, has began an investigation into Sharif’s killing, IPOA’s chairwoman Ann Makori informed journalists in a information convention on Monday.

“There’s an alleged police killing of a Pakistani national at Tinga market, Kajiado county, last evening. Our rapid response team has already been dispatched,” she stated.

Pakistan’s international ministry stated its excessive commissioner in Kenya was in contact with Kenyan police and the international workplace and a police report is awaited.

“I lost friend, husband and my favourite journalist,” his spouse, Javeria Siddique, stated on Twitter, asking for media to respect the household’s privateness.

Sharif’s demise sparked widespread response on social media in Pakistan from officers, journalists and others.

“I am deeply saddened by the shocking news of journalist Arshad Sharif’s tragic death,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stated on Twitter. The two Sharifs are usually not associated.

Former prime minister Imran Khan additionally condemned the demise and stated Sharif had been murdered for his journalistic work. He known as for a judicial investigation into the incident.