A councillor belonging to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) was shot dead while another person was critically hurt in a gun attack on a union council (UC) office in New Karachi area on Monday night, police and hospital officials said. The chairman of UC-6 and other people were present in the ‘reconciliation committee’ room when six assailants riding motorbikes opened indiscriminate fire on them and fled, according to New Karachi DSP Irshad Ali Bhutto. The officer said that the attackers were armed with Kalashnikovs and pistols and managed to escape from the crime scene. Two people, Azam Zahoor, 60, and Shakeel, 40, were injured in the firing and were taken to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital. Shakeel, who sustained three bullet wounds on different parts of his body, died during treatment at the hospital, additional police surgeon Dr Saleem Shaikh told Dawn. He added that the condition of Azam was serious as he has received a single bullet wound on his chest. Published in Daily Times, February 12th 2019.