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Pakistan: Four years without justice for murdered journalist Arshad Sharif / FIJ
Four years after senior Pakistani investigative journalist and television anchor Arshad Sharif was shot dead by Kenyan police while living in self-imposed exile, no perpetrator has been arrested or prosecuted. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Pakistan...
Pakistan: Four years without justice for murdered journalist Arshad Sharif
Four years after senior Pakistani investigative journalist and television anchor Arshad Sharif was shot dead by Kenyan police while living in self-imposed exile, no perpetrator has been arrested or prosecuted. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), call for an end to the continued impunity denying Sharif’s family and colleagues justice and the prosecution of the officers responsible for his murder.
Sharif, a senior investigative journalists and television anchor, left Pakistan in August 2022 after facing threats linked to his work and had been living in self-imposed exile in Kenya. On October 23, 2022, officers from Kenya’s General Service Unit opened fire on the vehicle in which he was travelling near Tinga Market, south of Nairobi. Police acknowledged firing the fatal shots but initially claimed they had mistaken the vehicle for one linked to a carjacking.
A two-member Pakistani fact-finding team sent to Kenya concluded in December 2022 that the killing appeared to be a “planned targeted assassination”. Its report identified contradictions in witness and police accounts and said Kenyan authorities had not provided full access to relevant officers and evidence. Pakistan’s Supreme Court subsequently directed authorities to register a criminal case, and a Special Joint Investigation Team was established.
Following constitutional reforms in Pakistan, the proceedings were transferred to the country’s Federal Constitutional Court, which ended its supervision of the investigation in early 2026. The criminal investigation remained with law-enforcement authorities, but no arrests, prosecutions or clear timetable for accountability followed.
In Kenya, one of Sharif’s widows, Javeria Siddique, pursued legal action with the Kenya Union of Journalists and the Kenya Correspondents Association. Kenyan courts found that the shooting violated Sharif’s constitutional right to life and awarded his family KES 10 million (approx. USD 77,000) in compensation, but declined to characterise the killing as ‘torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment’. However, on July 3, 2026, Kenya’s Supreme Court dismissed a final appeal seeking to compel prosecution of the officers, release investigation records and increase compensation, holding that charging decisions rest with the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The PFUJ said: “There is complete impunity in the murder of Arshad Sharif, despite authorities in Pakistan and Kenya recognising his killing as murder. The PFUJ reiterates its call on the Government of Pakistan and the Chief Justice of Pakistan to deliver justice to Arshad Sharif’s family, ensure those responsible are prosecuted and punished, and end impunity in this case.”
The IFJ said: “Four years after Arshad Sharif was murdered, the failure to hold the perpretrators to account is a grave denial of justice and a dangerous message to journalists across the world. The IFJ stands with Sharif’s family and Pakistan’s journalist community in demanding an independent, transparent investigation in Kenya and Pakistan, the release of all relevant findings, and the prosecution of the officers responsible for his death. Impunity must not be allowed to prevail.”
For further information contact IFJ Asia - Pacific on [email protected]
The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 140 countries
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