According to the first-information report (FIR), Ambreen Fatima, a senior journalist with Urdu-language newspaper Nawa-I-Waqt, along with her daughter and sister, left their home in a car and were attacked on an adjoining street. The unknown aggressors reportedly broke the car’s front windshield with an iron bar and hurled death threats at Fatima and her family before fleeing. 

The incident comes days after Fatima’s husband, Ahmad Noorani, published an explosive story with Fact Focus on the controversies surrounding former chief justice of Pakistan, Mian Saqib Nisar. Noorani is an investigative journalist in self-exile in the U.S. after he was assaulted in Islamabad in 2017. He is known for reporting critically on Pakistan’s administration. 

The IFJ’s South Asia Press Freedom Report 2020-2021, found that several key safety-related challenges adversely affected journalists and media workers in Pakistan. Compared to other South Asia countries, Pakistan had the highest number of journalist killings through the report’s monitoring period and the second-highest number of non-fatal attacks on journalists.

The IFJ said: “The IFJ calls on the Pakistan government to ensure the safety and security of journalists by enacting effective legislation and fulfilling its international obligation under the Constitution of Pakistan in upholding press freedom. The IFJ urges Pakistani authorities to foster a safe environment where journalists can work without fear of retribution or persecution.”