Islamabad: A reporter of a TV news channel was shot and killed by unidentified gunmen in the restive Balochistan province of southwest Pakistan on Sunday, police said. Rehmatullah Abid, a reporter for Dunya News, was sitting at a barber's shop in Washbood area of Panjgur district when two gunmen riding a motorcycle fired at him on Sunday afternoon.
Abid succumbed to his injuries while being taken to hospital. Law enforcement personnel cordoned off the area but were unable to trace the attackers. Abid's body was handed over to his relatives after an autopsy.
Balochistan Chief Minister Aslam Raisani directed authorities to arrest the killers as soon as possible. The murder was condemned by Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf, Quetta Press Club president Saleem Shahid and Balochistan Union of Journalists president Eisa Tareen.
Reporters' organisations urged the government to provide protection to journalists. Abid had earlier worked as a part-time correspondent for the state-run APP news agency in Panjgur district.
No group claimed responsibility for the killing. In September, a reporter of the ARY News channel was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Khuzdar city of Balochistan province.
Another employee of ARY News was killed in Peshawar city in the northwest during violent protests against an anti-Islam film the same month.
Statistics compiled by the Committee to Protect Journalists earlier this year showed that over 40 journalists had been killed in Pakistan since 1992. UNESCO has ranked Pakistan country as the world's second most dangerous country for reporters after Mexico.
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