Top court to oversee probe on Pakistani journalist’s death

Pakistan’s Supreme Court has appointed a panel of five judges to oversee an investigation into the killing of a prominent investigative journalist shot dead in Kenya, it said on Tuesday.

Arshad Sharif was shot dead in October by police at a roadblock in the East African country in what the police said was a case of mistaken identity.

Mr Sharif was a well-known critic of Pakistan’s military and his killing caused outrage in the Asian country.

The court has voluntarily taken up the matter and the five-member panel will be headed by chief justice Umar Atta Bandyal.

In a statement, the court said it had sought responses from the Pakistani ministries of foreign affairs and interior, as well as the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

Opposition politician Fawad Chaudhry has welcomed the development, saying in a tweet that “people expect the Supreme Court and judges to stand up for the rule of law and protect human rights”.