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Widow of slain Pakistan journalist killed in Kenya now writes to UN boss


Ms Javeria Siddique, the wife of Mr Arshad Sharif, a Pakistan journalist who was killed in Kenya in October 2022 has now written to the United Nation (UN) seeking help in the ongoing investigations on the murder.

Ms Siddique penned a letter to UN boss Antonio Guterres accusing Kenya of being uncooperative in the ongoing investigations despite efforts to reach out to them.

“We have not gotten any legal help in Kenya and the Kenyan government has not been helpful and cooperative. All I have been facing is online harassment,” she said.

The car that slain Pakistan journalist Arshad Sharif was riding in before his death
The car that slain Pakistan journalist Arshad Sharif was riding in before his death

According to her, the Independent Policing and Oversight Authority (IPOA) had not shared any details of their report. She also said that the Ministry of Interior has yet to share any information that will assist in the ongoing investigations.

Also read: ‘I open my WhatsApp to text him, then I remember…’ cries wife of slain Pakistan Journalist

She claimed that Mr Sharif’s laptop and mobile phones were still in the custody of the Kenyan National Intelligence Service (NIS).

“There are several contradictions and primary findings and the family has requested for the UN boss to intervene and see the body investigate the death of my husband,” she said.

Ms Siddique said that she believed that if the UN took up the matter, then the truth of what transpired would be known, and the perpetrators would be arraigned in the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands.

In this picture taken on June 22, 2022, a top Pakistani news anchor Arshad Sharif speaks during an event on “Regime Change Conspiracy and Pakistan’s Destabilisation” in Islamabad. PHOTO | AFP

She also asked International bodies that deal with matters of journalists, Human Rights bodies and Amnesty International to also reach out to the UN over the matter.

A Pakistan committee that was formed and tasked with investigating his death handed over the report to its government in December 2022.

The committee, which was formed on October 26, 2022, comprised Pakistan Federal Investigation Agency Director Athar Wahid and Intelligence Bureau Deputy Director Omar Shahid Hamid.

Also read: Revealed: Slain Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif’s final moments in Kenya

The committee handed over the 400-page report due to be presented to the Supreme Court.

The team had visited Kenya, where Mr Arshad was killed on October 23, 2022, by officers attached to the General Service Unit (GSU) along Magadi Road in Kajiado County.

Slain Pakistan journalist Mr Arshad Sharif with wife Javeria Siddique
Slain Pakistan journalist Mr Arshad Sharif with wife Javeria Siddique

While in Kenya, the team spoke to several individuals, including officers investigating the matter, senior officers from the Ministry of Interior, and two Kenyan nationals, Waqar Ahmad and Khurram Ahmad.

Waqar and Khuram, who are brothers, have also been grilled by detectives attached to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) over the death of the journalist.

Equally, the committee has been investigating how the journalist left the United Arabs Emirates (UAE) for Kenya and what motivated the move.

Also read: Exclusive: Last person to see slain Pakistan journalist alive, grilled by police