People walk past shops closed due to strike to condemn the death of a prominent Pashtun rights activist, in Quetta, Pakistan, Monday, Feb. 4, 2019. Pakistan has ordered an investigation into the death of prominent Pashtun rights activist Arman Loni following a weekend sit-in that dissolved into clashes with police. (AP Photo/Arshad Butt)
Republished February 04, 2019 - 1:43 AM
Original Publication Date February 04, 2019 - 12:06 AM
QUETTA, Pakistan - Pakistan has ordered an investigation into the death of a prominent Pashtun rights activist following a weekend sit-in that dissolved into clashes with police.
Friends and family of Arman Loni accuse the police of intentionally targeting and killing him. Loni was a leader in the Pashtun Protection Movement, which campaigns against perceived high-handedness by the security forces against the Pashtun minority.
He died on Saturday after clashes erupted at the sit-in in the town of Loralai in Baluchistan province. Police and doctors say he died of a heart attack.
The government didn't elaborate on why an investigation was ordered.
In Quetta, the Baluchistan provincial capital, a partial strike started Monday with most shops closing to denounce Loni's death.
Pashtuns make up about 15 per cent of Pakistan's population of 220 million.
News from © The Associated Press, 2019