DAR AL ISLAM - PAKISTAN: FEMALE MINISTER SHOT FOR "BREAKING ISLAMIC DRESS CODE"

Female Pakistani minister shot dead for 'breaking Islamic dress code'

A provincial Pakistani minister and woman’s activist has been shot dead by an Islamic extremist who believed that she was dressed inappropriately and that women should not be involved in politics.

Zilla Huma Usman, the minister for social welfare in Punjab province and an ally of President Pervez Musharraf, was killed as she was about to deliver a speech to dozens of party activists, by a “fanatic”, who considered her depraved for not wearing full Islamic dress, officials said.

“He killed her because she was not observing the Islamic code of dress. She was also campaigning for emancipation of women,” said Nazir Ahmad, a local officer, adding that the suspect was a known extremist with a history of targeting women he considered “immoral”.

The attack happened in Gujranwala, 120 miles southeast of Islamabad, where the minister’s office is based. As Ms Usman, 35, stepped out of her car – where she was greeted by her co-workers throwing rose petals - the attacker pulled out a pistol and fired a single shot at close range, hitting her in the head. She was airlifted to hospital in the provincial capital Lahore, but died soon afterwards.

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