Islamabad:
The brutal killing of Pakistan journalist Saleem Shehzad has sparked outrage in the country, with editorials calling it a "bloody chapter" in the country's history of press safety.
Forty-year-old Syed Saleem Shehzad, who went missing over the weekend, was found dead in Punjab province on Tuesday and his body bore marks of torture. (Read: Missing Pak journalist found dead)
Underscoring the dangers of reporting in Pakistan, the lead piece in Dawn said today, "'...another chapter to the bloody history of Pakistan's press freedom record."
An editorial in Daily Times said, "We will add one more statistic to our number of Pakistani journalists killed," referring to how little will change after Shehzad's murder.
Shehzad, the Pakistan bureau chief for Asia Times Online, was reported missing on Sunday evening shortly after he left his home in Islamabad for a television station.
Reports earlier on Tuesday said a body had been found near Shehzad's car at Sarai Alamghir near Jhelum town. After police informed Shehzad's family, a relative went to the site and identified the body. Police said his body bore marks of torture.
Rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, had earlier said they believed Shehzad was in the custody of Pakistani intelligence agencies.
The International Federation of Journalists and the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists had appealed to the Pakistani government to order security agencies to trace Shehzad.
No group claimed responsibility for the killing and Shehzad's family said he had no enmity with anyone.
Shehzad had shifted from Karachi to Islamabad two years back and his reporting mostly focussed on militant groups, including banned groups and al Qaeda. (With PTI Inputs)
Forty-year-old Syed Saleem Shehzad, who went missing over the weekend, was found dead in Punjab province on Tuesday and his body bore marks of torture. (Read: Missing Pak journalist found dead)
Underscoring the dangers of reporting in Pakistan, the lead piece in Dawn said today, "'...another chapter to the bloody history of Pakistan's press freedom record."
An editorial in Daily Times said, "We will add one more statistic to our number of Pakistani journalists killed," referring to how little will change after Shehzad's murder.
Shehzad, the Pakistan bureau chief for Asia Times Online, was reported missing on Sunday evening shortly after he left his home in Islamabad for a television station.
Reports earlier on Tuesday said a body had been found near Shehzad's car at Sarai Alamghir near Jhelum town. After police informed Shehzad's family, a relative went to the site and identified the body. Police said his body bore marks of torture.
Rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, had earlier said they believed Shehzad was in the custody of Pakistani intelligence agencies.
The International Federation of Journalists and the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists had appealed to the Pakistani government to order security agencies to trace Shehzad.
No group claimed responsibility for the killing and Shehzad's family said he had no enmity with anyone.
Shehzad had shifted from Karachi to Islamabad two years back and his reporting mostly focussed on militant groups, including banned groups and al Qaeda. (With PTI Inputs)
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