Ayub Khan Khattak
Incident Description: Shot Dead
Summary of Case
On October 11, 2013, a reporter for a local newspaper Karak Times, Ayub Khan Khattak, was shot dead outside his home by two gunmen in Karak district of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The gunmen, waiting on a motorcycle, opened fire on Khattak as he was returning home with his son at around six in the evening after offering prayers. He died on the spot and the attackers fled the scene.
A First Information Report (FIR) was registered by Khattak’s son, Shams-ur-Rehman, who was an eyewitness to his father’s killing. The FIR was registered against Ameenullah and Hub-e-Niaz. Khyber Union of Journalists (KUJ) President Malick Arshad told PPF that Khattak published news against the drug mafia which could be the reason for his killing, as the accused were involved in many cases of robberies and the drug trade.
The inspector of Latamber Police Station, where the murder case was filed, Muhammad Aslam Khattak, said that both the accused were caught in a robbery case a few days earlier and were later released on bail. Ayub Khan Khattak published the story in his newspaper which could have been the cause behind his killing. At the time, the inspector said that the police were investigating the incident and the accused could be arrested soon.
Khattak left behind a widow and two sons.
Updates
Abdul Saboor Khattak told PPF that a district court had sentenced Ameenullah to life imprisonment. But later he submitted a petition in the Peshawar High Court and he was granted bail. One month after his release he was killed. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), quoting local media, on March 16, 2016, a court had sentenced Ameenullah Niaz to life imprisonment and also fined him Rs5 million for the murder.
As per the reporter, Niaz’s brother, Khoob, was acquitted for being an accomplice. “During the trial, the court was told Khattak’s reporting on drug dealing angered Aminullah Niaz, and that he had previously threatened the journalist,” the report stated. Additionally, the slain journalist’s family had said they planned to appeal Khoob’s acquittal of Khoob and demand “harsher sentences for both brothers”.