KARACHI: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif presided over on Monday a meeting on law and order and the ongoing operation against terrorists in Karachi.
According to a brief statement issued after the meeting, the prime minister was briefed on the situation by Additional Inspector General Shahid Hayat Khan and Sindh Rangers Director General Maj Gen Rizwan Akhtar.
But sources said the meeting mainly focused on progress in investigation into the attack on senior journalist and GeoNews anchorperson Hamid Mir.
“The prime minister asked the city police chief to expedite the investigation,” said a source citing a brief interaction between the prime minister and the city police chief.
“He [Nawaz Sharif] called it a test case for Karachi police. Shahid Hayat was confident that the attackers would be arrested and planners exposed,” the source said.
Talking to reporters at the Aga Khan University Hospital where he enquired the health of the journalist, the prime minister said the targeted operation in Karachi was yielding “positive results” and reiterated the government’s resolve to restore peace in the country.
Answering a question, he said that sometimes talks with the Taliban hit snags but “some progress” had been made. “We want to resolve all issues through dialogue.”
Accompanied by Sindh Governor Ishartul Ibad, Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah and federal ministers, the prime minister said an independent judicial commission had been set up to investigate the attack on Hamid Mir and its report would be made public.
All aspects would be assessed and a “thorough investigation” carried out in the case, he added.
Meanwhile, police investigators conducted a re-enactment of the crime scene from the airport to the place of attack. They also assessed the possible routes of escape used by the attackers.
Meanwhile, journalists’ bodies and civil society organisations continued their protests outside the Karachi Press Club on Monday against the attack.
The condition of Hamid Mir continued to improve. A brief statement issued by the AKUH said the patient had been shifted to a private room and he was conscious.
