Rochdale man shot dead in Pakistan on his way to "surprise his family"
Tasaraf Hussain was killed as he left Islamabad airport
A Rochdale man has been shot dead in Pakistan while on his way to surprise family members living in the country.
Father of two Tasaraf Hussain, an overseas British Kashmiri, was visiting his homeland when he was brutally shot and killed after leaving Islamabad airport on Wednesday (January 8th).
His relatives have now set up a petition, urging the government to look into what they're calling a "disturbing trend targeting overseas Kashmiris/Pakistanis".
Rochdale MP, Tony Lloyd, and Councillor Neil Emmott, Leader of Rochdale Borough Council, have released the following joint statement:
"Shocking news from Rawalpindi as Tasaraf Hussain, a resident of Rochdale, was recently killed in Pakistan.
"Our thoughts and condolences are with the family and both Cllr Neil Emmott and I have written to the UK Foreign Office and the Pakistan Ambassador to look into this with urgency and outline what action will be taken to bring the murderers to justice."
Relatives of the married father of two have said:
"His life was cut short in an act of senseless violence that could have been prevented with proper supervision and security measures on commonly travelled routes."
Tony and Cllr Neil Emmott have written to David Cameron, the UK's Foreign Secretary, and the High Commissioner of Pakistan to the UK, Dr Muhammad Faisal, requesting that the death of Mr Hussain is 'urgently' looked into to ensure the 'murderers are brought to justice', and to outline what measures will be taken so the safety of those traveling in the region.