On Thursday, Chairman PTI Imran Khan and at least 14 other people sustained injuries as a result of a failed assassination attempt on Imran Khan. The apparent shooter was tackled by the participants of the march and was immediately arrested by the police.
Read More: Assassination attempt on Imran Khan “alarming, disgraceful”: President
However, open source intelligence and statements of eyewitnesses suggest that multiple shots were fired towards the Azadi container from multiple directions. Hence the theory that the gunman whose confessional statements is being circulated on media was just a distraction is not unfounded.
DJ Hamza says he saw another shooter with the gun who opened brust at the container who was different from the guy being paraded on media.
While investigation is pending, but this is not the doing of one gunman. Most likely the guy who has been arrested was just a diversion.
— OSINT Insider (@OSINT_Insider) November 3, 2022
Multiple eyewitnesses of the incident said that shots were fired from the second story of a nearby building. DJ Hamza, the DJ hired by PTI for Azadi March, while speaking to media, said that he saw another shooter who opened burst from a nearby roof.
Read More: World condemns assassination attempt on Imran Khan
Similarly, the fact that 15 people were injured in the incident adds credence to the multiple shooters theory. A single gunman with a pistol couldn’t have incurred so much fatalities. Moreover, in the videos available the gunman could be seen to have been tackled by another man immediately after he takes out his pistol.
یہ معاملہ اتنا سادہ نہیں، ایک پستول سے نکلنے والی چھ گولیوں نے 14 افراد کو زخمی کیسے کیا اور ایک آدمی کی جان کیسے لے لی؟ pic.twitter.com/tso5euuGyo
— Hamid Mir حامد میر (@HamidMirPAK) November 3, 2022
Coloner Sheraz, a retired professional sharp shooter of Pakistan Army, is also of the opinion that the incident involved multiple shooters, as a pistol could not have caused as much damage.
پاک فوج کے ایک بیسٹ شارپ شوٹر کرنل شیراز ریٹائرڈ کے مطابق " پسٹل سے اتنا دور نشانہ لینا اور تمام کے تمام فائر کنٹینر پر لگنا ممکن ہی نہیں اس میں ملٹی شوٹرز اور ملٹی گنز استعمال ہوئی ہیں "#عمران_خان_ہماری_ریڈ_لائن #حقیقی_آزادی_لانگ_مارچ pic.twitter.com/LajaHFpTOk
— Sheikh Sarmad (@ShSarmad71) November 3, 2022
In the videos of incident circulating on social media, a burst of bullets can be heard, there exist confusion if a pistol can fire that sort of a burst.
In another video, policemen can be seen aiming their weapons at the roof of a nearby building immediately after the shooting.
Chief Minister of Punjab Chaudhry Parvez Elahi has ordered formation of a high-powered Joint Investigation Team for a thorough and transparent investigation of the incident. Furthermore, the police staff behind the release of the confessional statement has been suspended for working unprofessional.
Meanwhile, PTI has announced country-wide protest unless the suspected culprits behind the incident stepdown from their positions.
آج نماز جمعہ کے بعد تمام ملک میں احتجاج ہو گا. جب تک عمران خان کا مطالبہ پورا نہیں ہوتا، ملک گیر احتجاج جاری رہے گا
— Asad Umar (@Asad_Umar) November 4, 2022
Read More: PTI announces countrywide protests after Friday prayers