Seven Pakistani journalists killed in 2022

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 30 December 2022

Seven journalists were murdered in Pakistan in 2022 under various circumstances. Their deaths expose the significant dangers faced by media professionals in the country.

Summary

ISLAMABAD—A total of seven Pakistani journalists were killed in the line of duty in 2022, including Arshad Sharif (pictured) in Kenya.

On January 24, 2022, Hasnain Shah, a crime reporter for Capital TV, was shot dead in Lahore by two men on a motorcycle. Shah, who was also a member of the Lahore Press Club, was at a traffic light when the two attackers shot him seven times and fled.

A week later, police said the journalist was killed over a financial dispute with a jeweler, as killers were paid half a million rupees for his murder.

In March 2022, a car carrying journalists, including Ziaur Rehman, was attacked by armed men in Khanewal. As attackers opened fire, one bullet hit Zia in the head. He worked as a reporter for the 7 News channel. The other journalists in the car escaped and took Zia to a hospital in Khanewal before shifting him to Nishtar Hospital in Multan. He died of his injuries on April 28.

On July 1, 2022, shooters killed Ishtiaq Sodharo, who worked for a local Sindhi weekly, in Khairpur. The following day, Iftikhar Ahmed, a reporter with the Urdu Daily Express, was killed by unknown killers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Two shooters killed Muhammad Younis, a senior journalist working for Daily Express, on August 27, 2022, in Shorkot, Punjab.

On October 10, 2022, the tragic death of Sadaf Naeem saddened everybody. A mother of two covering the long march of PTI chief Imran Khan was crushed to death near Sadhoke. Her death highlighted the reporters’ plight of working under the never-ending pressure of coming up with breaking news.

Daily Dawn maintained her death “ laid bare the pressures journalists in the field have to face, as well as the lack of professional training available to media practitioners.”

Two weeks later October 23, 2022, Pakistan was jolted by the news of Arshad Sharif’s murder in Kenya. Though the police in Kenya claimed it was a case of mistaken identity, it later became clear it was a planned targeted murder.

KEY POINTS:

• Hasnain Shah was shot dead in Lahore over a financial dispute.
• Ziaur Rehman died after being attacked by armed men in Khanewal.
• Sadaf Naeem was tragically killed while covering a political event.
• Arshad Sharif was murdered in Kenya, raising questions about journalism safety.
• The incidents underscore the grave risks faced by journalists in Pakistan.