In a shocking incident, a 22-year-old Pakistani blogger and journalist who is well known for bashing his own country’s military and the spy agency ISI was murdered by a man in Islamabad, the police confirmed the news today.
Muhammad Bilal Khan with over 16,000 followers on Twitter, 48,000 on his YouTube channel and 22,000 on Facebook, was with his friend on Sunday night when he suddenly received a phone call to go from the Bara Kahu area in Islamabad to G-9 and it was when a man took him into the forest, Dawn news quoted the police as saying.
It has been learnt that the suspect used a dagger to kill him, Superintendent of Police (SP) Saddar Malik Naeem confirmed the news, adding that some people heard gunshot firing too.
Mr. Khan’s friend was also badly injured in the incident.
Besides being a social media activist, Mr Khan was also known to be a freelance journalist. Soon after his killing, #Justice4MuhammadBilalKhan started trending on all online platforms.
Also many Twitter users added that his criticism of the Pakistan Army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) resulted to his murder.
“Pakistani activist and journalist Mohammad Bilal Khan was shot dead last night in Islamabad. Khan was known for his criticism of the all-powerful military and its notorious spy agency,” a man informed by means of a tweet.
The man’s father identified as Abdullah said his body had marks of a sharp weapon. “My son’s only fault was that he spoke about the Prophet,” he said.
“The incident has created fear among people,” he added.
A case has also been filed under various sections including the Anti-Terrorism Act.
(With PTI inputs)