KARACHI, April 21: A doctor who was shot and wounded on Saturday night near Sea Breeze Hospital on M. A. Jinnah Road died on early Sunday morning.

Police said Dr Hafiz Amir Muavia, aged 35, was shot at a close range by unidentified assailants in front of Neurospinal Medical Centre, adjacent to Karachi Adventist Hospital.

He was about to open the door of his car (P-2933) when an unidentified man came near him, opened fire and escaped.

Police said Dr Muavia, a urologist at JPMC, saw patients at Neurospinal Medical Centre on some week days.

The DSP Preedy, Aijaz Hashmi, said Dr Muavia received a single bullet in his head fired from point-blank range. The bullet pierced through his head.

The doctor was rushed to Neurospinal Medical Centre and operated upon there. Later he was shifted to the JPMC where he died in the early hours of Sunday morning. Dr Muavia belonged to Ghotki, Sindh.

The Doctors Association of the JPMC condemned the killing of Dr Muavia.

63 doctors: Sixty-three doctors have been killed in Karachi since 1989, of them 36 fell prey to terrorism, a spokesman for the Sindh police said on Sunday.

He said investigations had been carried out in 63 cases of doctors’ killing. 36 doctors had been targeted during the past 13 years. Nine doctors had been killed over enmity, two in family disputes, three during robbery, and the motive for the killing of 13 doctors remained unknown and these cases were being investigated. He said among the doctors killed 38 were Sunni and 24 others Shia.