Hillary Clinton condemns killing of Pakistani journalist

Washington, Jun 1: US today (June 1) strongly condemned the abduction and killing of investigative Pakistani journalist Syed Saleem Shehzad as international media labelled his death as "payback not from militants but country's fearsome spy agency".

Supporting Pakistan Government's investigations into the circumstances surrounding his death, the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, "His work reporting on terrorism and intelligence issues in Pakistan brought to light the troubles extremism poses to Pakistan's stability".

"We support the Pakistani government's investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death," she said in a statement.

"We remain committed to helping the government and people of Pakistan as they work to bring peace and stability to the country," Clinton said.

"Syed Saleem Shahzad's killing was payback, other journalists and human rights activists said they believed not from militants, but from Pakistan's fearsome spy agencies", The New York Times and ''Washington Post'' reported as the papers gave prominence to his killing.

According to the Post, Shahzad's killing also renewed attention on the alleged crossover between militants and Pakistan's security forces, some of which he outlined in his recent article for the Hong Kong-based Asia Times Online, for which he was the Pakistan bureau chief.

PTI