TANK: A local journalist Dr Muhammad Zaman Mehsud was killed when unidentified gunmen opened fire on his vehicle in Tank district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on Tuesday.

Zaman Mehsud ─ Photo by author
Zaman Mehsud ─ Photo by author

Police sources told DawnNews that Zaman was travelling from Gomal Bazar to Tank when his car came under attack on North Waziristan Road.

Two motorcycle-riding armed men opened fire on his car and left him seriously injured.

Read: Journalists under threat

Area residents took Zaman to District Headquarters Hospital (DHQ) Dera Ismail Khan where the doctors pronounced him dead.

Zaman Mehsud was a senior journalist who also served as the president and secretary general of the Tribal Union of Journalists’ South Waziristan chapter.

Also Read: ‘More journalists killed in Pakistan than any other democracy’

According to UN figures, over the past decade, 700 journalists have been killed the world over during the course of discharging their duties.

Journalists — especially in hotspots such as Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — are regularly threatened and attacked in Pakistan.

The 2014 report of the Committee to Protect journalists (CPJ) stated that 44 journalists were killed in Pakistan during the last one decade. CPJ has also documented that an additional 12 journalists were killed in “unclear circumstances” during the same time. In terms of impunity the country ranks ninth in the 2014 impunity index issued by CPJ.

Related: ‘Pakistani law does not guarantee journalists’ safety’

Opinion

Editorial

Kurram atrocity
Updated 22 Nov, 2024

Kurram atrocity

It would be a monumental mistake for the state to continue ignoring the violence in Kurram.
Persistent grip
22 Nov, 2024

Persistent grip

PAKISTAN has now registered 50 polio cases this year. We all saw it coming and yet there was nothing we could do to...
Green transport
22 Nov, 2024

Green transport

THE government has taken a commendable step by announcing a New Energy Vehicle policy aiming to ensure that by 2030,...
Military option
Updated 21 Nov, 2024

Military option

While restoring peace is essential, addressing Balochistan’s socioeconomic deprivation is equally important.
HIV/AIDS disaster
21 Nov, 2024

HIV/AIDS disaster

A TORTUROUS sense of déjà vu is attached to the latest health fiasco at Multan’s Nishtar Hospital. The largest...
Dubious pardon
21 Nov, 2024

Dubious pardon

IT is disturbing how a crime as grave as custodial death has culminated in an out-of-court ‘settlement’. The...