ISLAMABAD: An inquiry committee at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) will formally initiate an investigation on Monday to determine how journalist Arshad Sharif’s photographs taken during his autopsy were leaked to a private news channel.
A prominent Pakistani broadcaster who became a harsh critic of the incumbent government and the military toward the end of his life, Sharif was killed on October 23 when his car was said to have sped up and drove through a checkpoint outside the Kenyan capital, prompting the police to open fire.
The law enforcement officials in Nairobi expressed regret over the incident, saying it was a case of “mistaken identity” during a search for a car involved in a child abduction case. However, a Pakistani team of investigators that recently visited Kenya questioned the narrative of the officials in Nairobi while describing Sharif as “a victim of targeted killing.”
A Pakistani news channel, Dunya TV, recently shared pictures of the slain journalist taken during the autopsy, saying he had been tortured before his death.
“The following officers/officials are hereby requested to attend the inquiry committee meeting on 14/11/2022 at 9:30AM in Conference Room, IH, PIMS,” said the commission’s head, Dr. Naveed A. Shaikh, in a circular issued on Saturday in which he listed down the names of doctors and technical workers involved with Sharif’s autopsy.
The two-member inquiry committee was formed the hospital director, Dr. Khalid Masud, on Friday and asked to submit its report within three days.
It may be recalled that Sharif’s mother had approached the Islamabad High Court earlier this month to get her son’s delayed postmortem report.
She also requested the court that the document should not be made public without her family’s permission.
According to local media reports, the hospital authorities have also decided to approach Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) against the news channel for showing Sharif’s photographs and hurting “the family’s feelings.”
“In my opinion, it was unethical and Pemra should take notice,” the hospital director told Dawn newspaper.
Hospital to formally begin probe into Arshad Sharif’s leaked photos during autopsy on Monday
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Hospital to formally begin probe into Arshad Sharif’s leaked photos during autopsy on Monday
- A Pakistani news channel recently shared pictures of the slain journalist, saying he had been tortured before his death in Kenya
- The hospital also wants Pakistan’s media regulatory authority to act against the news channel for airing ‘unethical’ content
Pakistan arrests suspect arriving from Cambodia amid crackdown on human smuggling
- Suspect worked at an “online fraud company” in Cambodia, later started smuggling people from Pakistan, says FIA
- Pakistan has intensified crackdown against human smugglers after hundreds of migrants drowned near Pylos in 2023
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Sunday said it had arrested a key suspect involved in smuggling humans who had arrived from Cambodia, alleging he was also part of an international fraud network.
The suspect, identified as Zainullah, was arrested by FIA officials when he arrived in the southern port city of Karachi from Cambodia.
Zainullah had traveled from Pakistan to Cambodia in September 2024, a press release issued by the agency said.
“He worked at an online fraud company in Cambodia and later became involved as an agent in recruiting individuals from Pakistan,” the FIA said.
The FIA said it recovered images of multiple individuals’ passports, payment receipts and bank transaction records after extracting data from Zainullah’s phone.
It said the suspect received money through personal bank accounts and a cryptocurrency account.
“The suspect has been handed over to the FIA Anti-Human Trafficking Circle, Karachi, for further legal proceedings,” the FIA said.
“Further investigation is underway.”
Pakistan intensified action against illegal migration in 2023 after hundreds of migrants, including 262 Pakistanis, drowned when an overcrowded vessel sank off the Greek town of Pylos, one of the deadliest boat disasters in the Mediterranean.
Authorities say they continue to target networks sending citizens abroad through dangerous routes, following heightened scrutiny at airports and a series of arrests involving forged documents.
Pakistan’s interior ministry said this week illegal migration to Europe has declined by 47 percent this year after its nationwide crackdown, saying that more than 1,700 human smugglers have been arrested in 2025.
