Journalist killed in blast in Balochistan
Oct 10, 2021
Balochistan [Pakistan], October 11 : A journalist was killed in an explosion near his car in Balochistan's Hub area on Sunday night, local media reported citing a police official.
Dawn reported that a Shahid Zehri (35), who was a television reporter, was travelling in a car in Hub when he was attacked reportedly with a grenade, according to Eidgah Station House Officer Nadeem Haider.
Zehri, along with one companion, was initially taken to Hub Civil Hospital and where he was declared dead. Dawn citing CCTV footage of the incident reported that an explosion took place on the roadside near Zehri's moving car as soon as it made a U-turn on a busy road.
In February, the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors' (CPNE) Media Freedom Report 2020 had revealed that at least 10 journalists were murdered and several others threatened, kidnapped, tortured and arrested in Pakistan on trumped-up charges while discharging their professional responsibilities in 2020 alone, the publication reported.
No action has been taken so far against those responsible for torturing, killing journalists and it seems that such persons enjoy impunity. "It is a matter of grave concern that the legal system of the country has become useless in protecting and providing justice to journalists," said the report.
Meanwhile, at least two children were killed and three others were injured yesterday after a bomb explosion ripped through the Hoshab area of Balochistan's Turbat district, Geo Tv reported.
Balochistan Levies, a paramilitary gendarmerie in the province, said that some children were playing outside their houses in the area when a bomb explosion took place. Three children sustained injuries due to the blast.