Arshad Sharif a veteran Journalist shot dead in Kenya at the age of 49. The renowned Kenyan newspaper The Star has written the Journalist was shot dead when Arshad Sharif and his driver allegedly breach a roadblock that had been set up to check on motor vehicles using the route. They were driving from Magadi town to Nairobi on Sunday.
According to The Star newspaper, there was a police call to intercept a car similar to the one Arshad Sharif and his driver were driving following a carjacking incident in the Pangani area, Nairobi where a child was taken, hostage.
Sharif’s wife announced on Twitter about the incident and confirmed his death, acknowledging that her husband was killed in Kenya.
Javeria Siddique wrote on Twitter she said “ I lost friend, husband and my favourite journalist (Arshad Sharif) today, as per police he was shot in Kenya.”
She also requested to media and the public not to share their family pictures, personal details and Sharif’s last pictures from the hospitals on social media.
Sharif was previously associated with ARY News and had gone to Dubai after resigning from the channel.
The demise of a veteran journalist at the age of 49 in Kenya has raised many questions in the journalist community of Pakistan.
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has issued a statement on Twitter that a grim record of violent tactics to silence journalists explain why the reported murder of journalist Arshad Sharif in Kenya has sent shock waves to the journalist community and urged the government to pursue a transparent inquiry into the circumstances of his death.
Islamabad High Court Bar Association demanded a judicial inquiry into the mysterious death of journalist Arshad Sharif.
Hamid Mir a senior journalist has also urged the government to investigate the death of the journalist on the international level. He also raised questions on the Kenyan police version, why they never fired on the tire of the vehicle. Why they never targeted the driver? Why they shot Arshad Sharif directly in the head?
Mubasher Bukhari, a former colleague of Sharif at an international wire service said, “ Arshad was an articulate person and fine journalist it is very unfortunate that we lost a strong voice. His assassination must be independently investigated by an international team.”
President, Prime Minister, and many other dignitaries sent their condolences to Arshad Sharif’s family.
The deceased journalist was known for his bold journalism and strong views about institutional interference in Pakistani politics after the PTI chairman Imran Khan was ousted as the prime minister through the first-ever successful no-confidence motion in Pakistan’s political history.
