Personal enmity?: Air force official gunned down

Parmoli police officer Khan says deceased, identified as Farooq Zaib, was in his hometown for his wedding.

PESHAWAR:

A Pakistan Air Force official was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Asota Sharif, Swabi on Wednesday.

Parmoli police officer Ajmal Khan said the deceased, identified as Farooq Zaib, was in his hometown for his wedding that was scheduled for next week.

He added Zaib’s father Zahir Shah reported on Tuesday evening that his 25-year-old son, who was deployed at the Masroor Air Base in Karachi, went out of the house for a walk but did not return.

The next morning Zaib’s body was found in Khwar Ghara Aurangzeb Lara, on the outskirts of the village.

Khan said the body was shifted to Swabi for an autopsy, adding that it was yet to be ascertained whether Zaib was killed by militants or if the murder was a case of personal enmity. Shah told the police, however, that the family had no known enemies.

The police official said so far the incident was not registered as an act of terrorism, but investigation is under way.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 2^nd, 2014.