LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: Comments by the lead police investigator suggesting that the victim of a gang rape in Pakistan that occurred along one of the country’s most secure highways was to blame have spurred cries of outrage.
Investigators say the victim left her home with her two children in Lahore and was driving when her car ran out of fuel around 1:30 a.m. She called a relative and a helpline for the highway police, but before they arrived, two men approached, broke the car’s windows, and dragged the woman and her children to a field beside the highway, where she was gang raped.
On Thursday, Omar Sheikh, the lead investigator in the case, said in a TV news program that the victim should have taken another highway, the Grand Trunk (GT) Road, and should have made sure she had enough fuel for the journey.
The highway the attack took place on was constructed to replace the centuries-old and traffic-plagued GT Road, and is equipped with CCTV and a dedicated police force. Sheikh declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.
Shireen Mazari, the minister for human rights, said on Twitter that the investigator’s remarks were “unnaceptable.”
“The right to access public spaces and safe mobility is a fundamental right of every person in Pakistan, including women,” the Women in Law Initiative, a group of women lawyers and rights advocates, said in a statement condemning the attack and pointing out an increasing frequency in similar cases of violence against women and girls.
Twelve suspects had been arrested so far, Musarrat Cheema, spokesperson for the government of Punjab province, said on Twitter.
Prime Minister Imran Khan said in a statement on Twitter he was following the case closely and had asked investigators for the “arrest and sentencing of those involved in the incident as soon as possible,” adding that his government would look into how to strengthen laws to deal with an apparent increase in cases involving the rape of women and children.
In February, lawmakers passed a bill calling for those convicted of the sexual abuse and murder of children to be hanged in public. But the government opposed the bill and it was not enacted into law.
Pakistanis outraged as investigator blames mother gang-raped along major highway
https://arab.news/bw8vj
Pakistanis outraged as investigator blames mother gang-raped along major highway
- Lead investigator says victim should have taken another highway and made sure she had enough fuel for the journey
- Woman whose car broke down on highway Tuesday night was dragged to a field beside the motorway and assaulted in front of her children
Afghan Taliban envoy posted to Indian capital
- India has not officially recognized Taliban government but latest move signals deepening engagement between both
- Development takes place as New Delhi seeks to exploit surging tensions between Kabul, Islamabad to its advantage
NEW DELHI, India: Afghanistan’s Taliban government has appointed their first senior official in India since the group returned to power in 2021, charged with leading their embassy in Delhi.
India has not officially recognized the Taliban government, but the move signals a deepening engagement, with New Delhi seeking to exploit divisions between Islamabad and Kabul.
Noor Ahmad Noor, a Taliban foreign ministry official, assumed responsibility as charge d’affaires, and has already held meetings with Indian officials, the embassy said in a statement.
“Both sides emphasized the importance of strengthening Afghanistan-India relations,” the Afghan Embassy said, in a post on X late Monday.
India has not commented, but the Afghan embassy posted a photograph of Noor with senior Indian foreign ministry official Anand Prakash.
The Taliban’s strict interpretation of Islamic law may appear an unlikely match for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government, but India has sought to seize the opening.
Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan fought a brief but deadly clash in May 2025, their worst confrontation in decades.
The appointment is significant for the Taliban, which has sought to reclaim control over Afghanistan’s overseas diplomatic missions as part of a broader push for international legitimacy.
In October, India said it would upgrade its technical mission in Afghanistan to a full embassy.
Russia is the only country to officially recognize the Afghan Taliban government.
