Journalists Killed in 2016 - Motive Confirmed: Shehzad Ahmed

Shehzad Ahmed
Aaj News
August 8, 2016, in Quetta, Pakistan

Aaj News cameraman Shehzad Ahmed died in a massive bomb blast in Quetta, Pakistan, that killed more than 70 people, according to press reports. Khan, 30, was filming lawyers gathered at the Quetta Civil Hospital to mourn the murder of their colleague Bilal Kasi, president of the Baluchistan Bar Association, whose car was attacked by gunmen on motorcycles.

Ahmed died at the scene. Video footage taking during the blast captured Khan's dying words, a statement of faith.

Responsibility for the apparent suicide attack and the shooting was claimed by the militant group Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, which had been added to the U. S. State Department's list of global terrorist groups the week before the attack. Militants in Pakistan have repeatedly staged secondary attacks to target mourners following a first attack, or people rushing to the scene. Such secondary attacks put journalists, who often cover the funerals and the aftermath of bombings, at special risk.

Khan had worked as a cameraman at Aaj News for seven years, according to reports on Aaj News. He left behind a wife and two children. Funeral rites were performed the same day of his death, in his home town of Mastung, south of Quetta.