KARACHI – A Chinese national has succumbed to bullet wound after being fatally shot in the head near Karachi’s Zamzama Park, police said.
Authorities have acquired the phone data of Chen Zhu, who was working for a shipping company, suffered two bullet wounds to his head and later succumbed to his injuries. He was attacked by unidentified assailants near Zamzama Park on Monday.
According to the South Zone police station, the 46-year-old was working at a private shipping firm in Karachi. He, along with one his other workers, had left their office for lunch at a restaurant in Block-2 Clifton. An unidentified assailant opened fire at them while they were in their car, leaving Zhu critically injured.
A 30-year-old passer-by, identified as Hassan Abbas, was also shot in the leg when unknown suspects opened indiscriminate fire in the port city. Police said nine bullet casings were found at the site of the incident.
The injured were shifted to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center, where Zhu was pronounced dead.
China on Tuesday condemned and urged Pakistan to rapidly bring perpetrators to justice. “The consulate general of China has sent officials to the hospital and urged the police to solve the case as soon as possible and bring the criminals to justice,” foreign ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang told a regular briefing.
The two Chinese were among thousands of Chinese engineers and technicians working in Pakistan.
When asked whether Beijing was concerned about the safety of its citizens in Pakistan, Geng noted Pakistan’s government and military have taken a series of counterterrorism and social security measures.
“We support Pakistan’s relevant actions to safeguard national security and we believe Pakistan will continue to take measures to safeguard the safety of Chinese institutions and personnel in Pakistan,” said Geng.
Taking notice of the incident, Sindh Home Minister Sohail Anwar Khan had ordered district inspector general south to start an inquiry into the matter. “All measures should be taken to ensure that the suspects are arrested,” the minister said.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of the Sindh police registered a case against unidentified people. The case has reportedly been registered under the relevant sections of the Pakistan Penal Code and Anti-terrorism Act.
Security has been beefed up for foreigners, particularly Chinese nationals across the province.
Last month, a Chinese woman died days after she was shot dead during a robbery in capital Islamabad. Hu Lixia, a 35-year-old mother of three, was fatally shot when three gunmen stormed a residence rented by a group of Chinese nationals on Dec. 29, 2017 in Islamabad, and looted Rs550,000 in cash (nearly US$5,000) before fleeing.
Last October, Pakistan confirmed the death of two Chinese nationals who were kidnapped in the southwestern city of Quetta, months after the Islamic State group claimed it had killed them.
