Taliban claim responsibility for Pakistani minister's murder
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Islamabad, March 2, IRNA -- Taliban militants claimed responsibility for the assassination of Pakistani minister for minorities, Shehbaz Bhatti, who was shot dead near his residence in Islamabad.
Bhatti, the only Christian in the Pakistani cabinet, was shot dead in Islamabad’s I-8 sector shortly after he came out of his residence.
The gunmen left a note near Bhatti’s car, saying that he was killed as he has been critical of Pakistan's blasphemy law.
Islamabad police chief, Wajid Durrani, told reporters that the initial reports suggest that three men attacked the minister, who had no police escort at the time of the attack.
Durrani said that the Minister had himself asked the police guards to wait for him in the office.
Witnesses said that Bhuttai received eight bullets.
The gunmen first fired at the driver, injuring him. They later fired at the minister, who was heading to the Prime Minister’s office to attend the cabinet meeting.
A hospital spokesman said, Azmatullah Qureshi said the ministers had several bullet wounds.
The anti-blasphemy law has been under debate since last November, when a court sentenced a Christian mother of four to death.
On Jan 4 the governor of the most populous province of Punjab, Salman Taseer, who had strongly opposed the law and sought residential pardon for the 45-year-old Christian lady Asia Bibi, was gunned down by one of his bodyguards.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
