Mehsud extra-judicial killing protests continue in Islamabad
Tribesmen demand the arrest of his killers amid renewed focus on police encounters
The issue of extra-judicial killing has taken a new turn in Pakistan with ongoing protest by hundreds of tribesmen in Islamabad demanding immediate arrest of those involved in the killing and recovery of missing persons.
Tribal elders and youth from Mehsud tribe of South Waziristan gathered outside National Press Club in Islamabad holding placards and banners that read ‘Justice for Naqeeb Mehsud’.
They are demanding the arrest and accountability of the fugitive police officer ex-SSP Rao Anwar who has been accused of the killing of Naqeebullah Mehsud on January 13, 2018 in a staged ‘police encounter’ in the southern city of Karachi.
Police claimed the deceased was a militant affiliated with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) but it was later found to be a staged encounter led by Rao, in which the aspiring model Mehsud and three others were killed.
The killing of Mehsud, 27, a South Waziristan resident and father of three, sparked national outrage. In Islamabad, the march by Mehsud tribesmen entered its seventh day yesterday and it is feared once other tribal leaders and politicians join the protest it could turn into a serious headache for the federal capital, which has suffered several sit-ins in last two years. “If the government does not accept our demands then it would turn into wider demonstration as more people would join it” warned a protest leader Malik Noor Khan.
The protesters are demanding capital punishment for Anwar and his team for the killing of Mehsud; setting up of a judicial commission monitored by the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP); investigations into ‘extrajudicial’ killing of Pashtuns and recovery of all missing person and their handing over to the courts for fair trial. Talking to Gulf News, Mohsin Dawar, a young tribal activist, said: “If government do not heed to our demands, we would launch our long march and invite thousands of people from tribal areas to join the rally.”