CPJ wants Express attack investigated

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 17 August 2013

The Committee to Protect Journalists has urged Pakistani authorities to investigate the recent attack on Karachi's Express Media Group offices. Four armed men opened fire on the building, injuring a security guard and another employee.

Summary

NEW YORK: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has urged the Pakistani authorities to immediately investigate an attack on the offices of Karachi's Express Media Group on Friday.

Four unidentified men on motorcycles shot at the media office more than 30 times. The assailants fled after they opened fire at the building. Police arrived at the scene more than 40 minutes after the attack occurred.

"This kind of senseless violence illustrates the everyday dangers faced by journalists in Pakistan," said Bob Dietz, CPJ Asia program coordinator. "Until authorities muster the political will to investigate and prosecute crimes against the press, the cycle of attacks will continue."

Kamal Siddiqi, editor of the group's English-language paper The Express Tribune, told CPJ that no journalists were injured, but a security guard had been wounded in the back and was hospitalized in critical condition. The editor also told CPJ that a woman who works in the media group's marketing section had sought treatment for leg injuries at a local hospital. The victims' names have not been disclosed.

The office houses The Express Tribune, as well as the Urdu-language newspaper Roznama Express and the Express TV news channel, all of which continue operations.

Photo courtesy: Jahanzaib Haque

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KEY POINTS:

• Four men on motorcycles attacked Express Media Group offices in Karachi.
• Assailants fired over 30 shots and fled the scene.
• Police arrived 40 minutes after the attack.
• No journalists were injured, but a security guard was critically wounded.
• CPJ emphasizes the need for accountability to protect press freedom in Pakistan.