KARACHI: Pakistani police have filed terrorism charges against a security guard accused of opening fire on four Chinese nationals at a textile mill in Karachi, injuring two on Tuesday.
The attack took place at Liberty Textile Mill in the SITE Industrial Area, according to a police report.
The Chinese nationals — identified as Wang Xing Zhong, Zheng Luwen, Zhou Baolin and Wei Sixian — were at the mill to install new machinery. They reportedly arrived daily in a bulletproof vehicle with security provided by a private firm and the Special Protection Unit (SPU) of Sindh Police.
According to the report, filed on the request of the factory’s security head Najib-ur-Rab, the Chinese nationals had just started working on machinery installation in the knitting department on the first floor when the attack occurred.
“At around 8:15 a.m., a security guard named Sharifullah, employed by Executive Security Company and stationed at Liberty Mill for four to five months, went to the first floor and, for unknown reasons, began firing indiscriminately at the Chinese nationals with a 9mm pistol, intending to kill,” the police report said.
Two of the Chinese nationals, Wang Xing Zhong and Zheng Luwen, were seriously injured and were rushed to the hospital in the factory’s ambulance. The guard fled the scene.
Police recovered 16 used 9mm shell casings at the site.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry condemned the attack, saying the country “remains resolute in bringing the responsible individual to justice.”
It added that it was working closely with the interior ministry and the Chinese embassy in Islamabad to ensure a thorough investigation.
China, breaking with tradition, recently spoke out publicly against security threats to its workers and nationals in Pakistan, where hundreds work on Beijing-funded projects linked to the over $60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Last month, two Chinese nationals were killed in a suicide bombing near the international airport in Karachi. In March this year, a suicide bombing killed five Chinese engineers and a Pakistani driver in northwestern Pakistan as they headed to the Dasu Dam, the largest hydropower project in the country.
In 2022, three Chinese educators and their Pakistani driver were killed when an explosion tore through a van at the University of Karachi. A bus blast in northern Pakistan in 2021 killed 13 people, including nine Chinese nationals.
Pakistan announced in a joint statement with China last month it had agreed to increase security for Chinese citizens and projects in the South Asian nation, as Beijing called for urgent security measures following a surge in militant threats.
Sindh Home Minister Zia Ul Hassan Lanjar has directed police to conduct a “thorough investigation,” his office said soon after the recent shooting incident.
According to a statement, the minister also directed an audit of security companies providing protection to Chinese nationals and other foreigners.
“The physical and mental fitness tests of guards assigned to important duties like security should be done,” the statement quoted Lanjar as saying.
Pakistan files terrorism charges against guard for attacking Chinese nationals in Karachi
https://arab.news/zdadh
Pakistan files terrorism charges against guard for attacking Chinese nationals in Karachi
- The incident followed last month’s suicide bombing in the city that killed two Chinese workers
- Pakistan’s foreign ministry says it is ‘resolute’ in bringing the perpetrator of the crime to justice
Pakistan, Indonesia sign MoUs to expand cooperation as Islamabad seeks to ease trade imbalance
- Pakistan offers to send doctors and medical experts to support Indonesia’s expanding health needs
- Indonesian president highlights close foreign policy coordination with Pakistan, including on Gaza
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Indonesia signed seven memoranda of understanding on Tuesday to deepen cooperation in trade, education and health, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif saying Islamabad aimed to narrow a $4.5 billion bilateral trade imbalance heavily tilted in Jakarta’s favor.
The agreements were concluded during Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s two-day visit to Pakistan, his first trip to the country since taking office and the first by an Indonesian head of state in seven years.
Subianto, who arrived on Monday, held detailed talks with Sharif before the signing ceremony.
“Our discussion has been extremely productive,” Sharif said at a joint media appearance. “More than 90 percent of our current imports from Indonesia are palm oil. We have discussed how to take corrective measures to balance this through Pakistan’s agri-exports, IT-led initiatives and other areas.”
Sharif earlier noted Pakistan’s bilateral trade with Indonesia stood at around $4.5 billion, with the imbalance overwhelmingly in Jakarta’s favor.
Subianto thanked Pakistan for what he called an exceptionally warm welcome, noting his aircraft had been escorted by Pakistan Air Force JF-17 fighter jets.
He said the meeting had produced agreements across several fields, including trade, agriculture, education and science and technology.
The Indonesian president also welcomed Pakistan’s offer to help his country address critical shortages of medical professionals.
“Indonesia has vast needs for doctors, dentists and medical experts, and Pakistan’s support in this regard is strategic and critical,” he said.
Sharif noted Pakistan would be ready to send doctors, dentists and medical professors to assist Indonesia’s plans to expand its medical colleges and universities.
He added that Islamabad would “work closely and diligently” with Jakarta to achieve the targets set during the visit.
Subianto said both countries were also coordinating closely on foreign policy, particularly on developments in Gaza, and reaffirmed Indonesia’s support for a two-state solution.
He invited Sharif to visit Jakarta to deepen cooperation under the new agreements.
Pakistan and Indonesia marked the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties this year, with both leaders saying the visit would help lift relations to what Sharif called “a much higher level” in trade, development and people-to-people links.
