Experts 'not surprised' over 'inconclusive' report of Pak scribe murder probe

Karachi, Jan 15(ANI): Experts have said that an inconclusive judicial commission report on Pakistan journalist Saleem Shahzad's murder should not come as a surprise.

Committee to Protect Journalists' Asia Programme Coordinator Bob Dietz pointed out that the 'judicial panel' lacked requisite expertise to probe the matter.

"I know a lot of journalists had pressed for the judicial panel, but the report now clearly shows that it hasn't been able to serve its purpose of pointing out the murderers," The Express Tribune quoted Dietz, as saying.

"This is basically the job of the police who are trained to investigate murder cases. In fact it is only because of the inability of the police and the government to uncover the truth that the panel was entrusted with this job," he added.

Dietz suggested the case should have been investigated by a panel similar to the one that had been constituted to probe Daniel Pearl's murder in Karachi.

"In Daniel's case, real police work was done by experts in their fields. This led to the arrest of several suspects and eventually some of them were sentenced and sent to jails," she said.ietz also called on the media to take the initiative in exposing the murderers.

Senior Analyst Mazhar Abbas said pointed out a number of missing links in the commission's report like excluding Islamabad Inspector General of Police's testimony, which could have clarified how Saleem's vehicle was able to move out of Islamabad without the police's notice.

Pulitzer prize winning author Dexter Filkins, who had written an article in The New Yorker about Shahzad's death titled "The Journalist and the Spies" stood by his views expressed in the article.

Filkins has linked between Shehzad's death and militant commander Ilyas Kashmiri's killing, and also quoted senior American officials, who alleged that the orders to kill Shahzad came directly from the army. (ANI)