On June 16, 2019, unknown individuals stabbed and killed Muhammad Bilal Khan, an independent journalist who ran a YouTube channel where he interviewed political figures and talked about religion and politics, in Islamabad, Pakistan, according to news reports.
On the evening of June 16, Khan received a phone call from an unidentified man asking him to come to Islamabad’s G-9 sector, according to English-language Pakistani daily The News. When Khan and his relative Ehtasham ul Haq arrived at the location, unknown individuals hit Ehtasham from behind and stabbed him multiple times, and brought Khan to a nearby wooded area and stabbed him at least 17 times, according to the daily.
Khan and Ehtasham were taken to a local hospital, but Khan died en route, according to The News. Police said the suspects used a dagger to kill Khan, according to the Dawn newspaper. The day of the attack, Khan’s father filed a first information report with police, the first step towards an investigation, according to Dawn.
CPJ contacted the Islamabad police for comment via email, but did not receive an immediate response.
The motive for the killing remains unclear, according to the news reports.