Latest news with #Khawar
Express Tribune
a day ago
- Express Tribune
New autopsy ordered for Sanghar journalist after flaws in initial report
File photo of late journalist Khawar Hussain, posted by him on social media on June 7, 2025. (Facebook/ A fresh post-mortem was conducted in Hyderabad on journalist Khawar Hussain, who was found shot dead in Sanghar on Sunday. The move follows serious concerns over flaws in the initial autopsy carried out in Sanghar. According to reports on X, the fresh examination is being conducted at the request of Khawar's brother and following a directive from the Sindh Inspector General of Police. Earlier, official sources had flagged discrepancies in the initial autopsy report, raising questions about the cause of death. A fresh post-mortem of journalist #KhawarHussain is underway in Hyderabad, on the request of his brother and a letter from the Sindh inspector general of police. Earlier, official sources had raised serious concerns over flaws in the initial autopsy conducted in #Sanghar. — Naimat Khan (@NKMalazai) August 18, 2025 Hussain, a Karachi-based journalist, was found shot dead on Sunday in Sanghar. According to police and initial investigations, he was discovered inside his vehicle with a gunshot wound to the head, parked outside a private hotel on Hyderabad Road late Saturday night. A licenced pistol—registered in his name—was found in his hand. CCTV footage reportedly shows that he was alone at the scene, entering and exiting the hotel's washroom multiple times before returning to his car. The journalist's family arrived in Karachi from the United States on Monday morning. They reached Jinnah International Airport before travelling to Hyderabad and later to Sanghar. Hussain's father told reporters, 'Khawar was a very brave man. He could not have shot himself. This is a murder.' He added, 'We had no disputes or conflicts with anyone.' Read More: Journalist Khawar Hussain found shot dead in Sanghar A day earlier, a high-level investigative committee was formed to probe the mysterious death of the veteran journalist, officials confirmed. The committee is headed by Additional Inspector General of the Counter Terrorism Department, Azaad Khan, and includes DIG West Irfan Baloch and SSP Sanghar Abid Baloch as members. The notification was officially issued by DIG Crime and Investigation Aamir Farooqi. The panel has been tasked with reviewing all aspects of the case and is expected to submit its findings to the Sindh Inspector General of Police within two days.
Arab News
2 days ago
- Politics
- Arab News
Three-member panel to probe Pakistani journalist Khawar Hussain's death in Sindh's Sanghar
KARACHI: Authorities in Pakistan's Sindh province have set up a three-member committee to probe journalist Khawar Hussain's death in the Sanghar district under mysterious circumstances, police said on Sunday. Hussain's body was recovered from his hometown of Sanghar outside a local restaurant on Hyderabad Road on Saturday night, according to police officials. The journalist sustained a gunshot wound to his head. Police said the death appeared to be a suicide after they found a pistol clutched in Hussain's hand at the site of the incident, local media reported. But the claim was widely rejected by Hussain's friends and associates on social media. Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah ordered a probe into the death, after which DIG Crime and Investigation Wing Amir Farooqi notified a three-member investigation committee on Sunday evening. 'The committee will do preliminary investigation and ascertain facts from all angles,' read a notification issued from Farooqi's office. 'The complete report into the incident may be finalized in two days.' The probe panel is headed by Azad Khan, additional inspector general of the Sindh counter-terrorism department (CTD), with DIG Karachi West Irfan Baloch and Sanghar SSP Abid Baloch as members. Hussain was a Karachi-based correspondent for Dawn News. The news of his death drew condemnations from the Karachi Press Club and senior members of the Sindh government. 'Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has taken notice of the unnatural death of senior journalist Khawar Hussain in Sanghar,' a statement from Shah's office said on Saturday. 'The chief minister has sought a report from the inspector general of police. The real cause of death must be determined through investigation.' On Sunday, DIG Faisal Bashir Memon told Arab News the pistol clutched in Hussain's hand at the time of his death belongs to the journalist who had been keeping it for personal safety. 'He parked his car and went to the restroom twice. According to the CCTV footage, he was alone. Khawar asked the hotel manager about the restroom, then returned to his car and sat inside. He stepped out of the car again and asked the watchman about the restroom. He went toward the restroom once more and then came back and sat in the car again,' Memon told Arab News. 'The CCTV camera was installed on the other side of the driver's seat, and no one else was seen in the footage. The hotel manager later told the watchman to check if Khawar wanted to order something as he had been sitting [inside his car there] for quite a while. When the watchman went to the car, Khawar's body was found inside with a gunshot wound.' Police were awaiting the post-mortem report and the journalist's call data record (CDR) as they intended to probe the death from both murder and suicide angles, according to DIG Memon. As per a report released by the Pakistan-based media and development sector watchdog Freedom Network last year, 184 incidents of violence against journalists took place in Sindh between 2018 and 2023. These included the killings of 10 journalists in the province.
Express Tribune
06-06-2025
- Express Tribune
Second suspect in Hafizabad gang-rape incident killed
The gang-rape case has taken another turn as a second suspect, identified as Laeeq, was killed in an alleged police encounter near Kot Nanak village on Friday. Meanwhile, two police officials have been arrested for allegedly accepting a bribe to facilitate Laeeq's earlier release from custody. Police sources said the officers from Kassoki police station were on routine patrol when their vehicle came under fire from three to four armed men near Kot Nanak. Police returned fire in self-defence. During the exchange, one assailant was fatally shot — reportedly by gunfire from his own accomplices, who managed to flee. The deceased was later identified as Laeeq, one of the suspects in the gang-rape of a woman in front of her husband. Laeeq's body was shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital for autopsy, and police have registered a case against the unidentified attackers for assaulting law enforcement personnel. This development follows the death of another accused, Khawar, in a similar encounter just a day earlier. Despite these operations, two main suspects — Ikram Mangat and Chand Mangat — remain at large. Legal Inspector Muneeb Mangat, posted at the District Police Officer (DPO) office, and Kashif Warraich, in charge of the Hameed Pura police check post, have been charged with accepting a bribe of Rs140,000 in exchange for facilitating Laeeq's escape from legal custody.
Express Tribune
05-06-2025
- Express Tribune
Hafizabad gang-rape prime suspect killed in encounter
A key suspect in a gang-rape case was killed in an alleged police encounter near Jorian in the Mangat Uncha area, while three of his accomplices managed to flee, according to officials from the Crime Control Department (CCD). The CCD stated that the operation was conducted based on intelligence reports about the presence of suspects linked to a recent gang-rape incident. During the raid, the suspects reportedly opened fire on law enforcement officers from inside a building. Police retaliated in self-defence, and during the exchange of gunfire, one suspect, identified as Khawar, was fatally shotallegedly by bullets fired by his own accomplices during the crossfire. The remaining three suspects escaped and are currently being sought in an ongoing manhunt. Police sources revealed that Khawar, along with his associates Ikraam Mangat, Laeeq and Chand, had allegedly abducted a husband and wife at gunpoint and subjected them to sexual assault. The suspects reportedly forced the couple to engage in intercourse while filming the incident. The video was later shared online, sparking widespread outrage. The incident prompted swift action from District Police Officer (DPO) Atif Nazir, who ordered an immediate investigation and crackdown on the accused. Authorities confirmed that efforts are underway to apprehend the remaining suspects and that further legal proceedings will follow. Earlier on Wednesday, the female complainant in a gang-rape case that took place in Mangat Uncha on April 25, recorded her statement under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code before Civil Judge and Area Magistrate Ali Naqi Tipu, detailing the events involving abduction and assault. Over a month after the incident of gang-rape and forced sexual abuse, police registered a First Information Report (FIR) on June 3. The incident involved three armed men who allegedly gang-raped a woman in front of her husband at gunpoint, while one of the suspects recorded the assault on video. The case gained renewed urgency after the explicit footage surfaced on social media.
