ISLAMABAD: Senior journalist Tariq Mehmood Malik lost his life to Covid-19 on Thursday. He was 50.

While the country’s politicians and journalists have expressed grief and sorrow over his demise, the Foreign Office has postponed its weekly briefing as Malik had been covering foreign affairs for over a decade.

Irfan Ghauri, a relative of the deceased, toldDawnthat Malik developed a fever on Nov 20 and was being treated for infection and pneumonia as he had no symptoms of Covid-19.

“However, on Nov 29 he started facing difficulty in breathing due to which his family doctor suggested him to get himself tested for Covid-19 and he tested positive. Arrangements were made to provide oxygen at his house but after a few more days he was shifted to Holy Family Hospital. Then he was put on a ventilator and remained there for nine days. Initially there was some improvement but later he completely collapsed,” he said.

The deceased was laid to rest in Talagang.

Malik was associated with Daily Jang, ARY, Waqt TV, 92 News, Samma TV along with other media houses and had been working for Hum News.

Published in Dawn, December 18th, 2020