Relative hid among bodies as London banker was killed in terrorist shooting in Pakistan

Horror attack: Naiyyar Mehdi Zaidi, 60, with daughter-in-law Qaisra Khan. She told how Mr Zaidi died with two of his brothers in the Pakistan shooting
Benedict Moore-Bridger4 November 2016

The full horror of a terrorist massacre in which a retired London banker was shot and killed as a relative “played dead” to survive can be revealed today.

Two gunmen on a motorcycle murdered Naiyyar Mehdi Zaidi, 60, two of his brothers and three other victims when they opened fire at a Shia Muslim gathering in Pakistan.

Mr Zaidi’s daughter-in-law Qaisra Khan, an Islamic art expert and former British Museum curator, told how one relative, Murtaza Ali Zaidi, had to pretend to be dead after being hit in order to avoid being killed.

A family friend, Asad Rizvi, bravely tried to tackle the gunmen, who were wearing tactical body armour in Monday’s attack, but was shot in the face.

Ms Khan told the Standard: “Murtaza was shot in the shoulder. He saw it all. He stayed down because if he’d stood up he’d have been shot again.

"He stayed down with the deceased. The perpetrators were in full bullet-proof gear. One of the men who survived tried to tackle them and he was shot under the chin.

On guard: security officials at the scene where six people at a Shia gathering were massacred in Karachi
EPA

“They put the gun under his face and fired. But he survived and is recovering well, amazingly.”

Mr Zaidi, a keen gardener who worked at Habib Bank AG Zurich before retiring about a year ago, had travelled to Karachi to prepare for another son’s wedding next summer. He was due to return to the UK on November 7.

The group was standing outside a prayer meeting for women at a private residence in the city when the two gunmen drove past and tried to gain entry.

As the guards closed the gates, the pair began firing.

Also killed were brothers Nasir Abbas Zaidi, who is a US citizen, and Pakistani national Baqir Abbas Zaidi, along with distant relative Mohammad Zaki Khan, young driver Mohammad Nadeem, who had just got married, and a woman who has not been identified.

Two other Zaidi brothers are recovering in hospital — Tahir Abbas, who is a wealthy businessman from Pakistan, and Nadir Abbas.

It had been suggested the gunmen may have been targeting Tahir Abbas, but Ms Khan, 38, who is a Sunni Muslim, said she believed that it was in fact a sectarian attack targeting the Shia gathering.

Ms Khan, who called her father-in-law “my friend, my guide”, said: “There have been quite a few attacks on ladies’ gatherings recently. The whole thing is horrific.

“I can’t even identify with these people being Muslim. It was a private house so how did they know what was happening?”

She said she felt an obligation now to speak out against the sectarian divisions and try to stop the “deep-rooted” problems transferring to the UK.

“My father-in-law was very open-minded,” she went on. “I am Sunni and he had no problem with that. He was a really well-loved person and a wonderful human being.

“He would have wanted to be re- membered but also for people to recognise that all this (sectarian hate) has to stop.”

Hundreds gathered at this week’s funerals, which were protected by scores of armoured police vehicles, while the British consulate has visited the family to offer support.

Sunni sectarian group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi al Almi claimed responsibility for the killings, saying: “There is no room for the enemies of the companions of the prophet Mohammed in Pakistan” — a reference to the country’s Shia minority.

Harun Khan, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, called the murder “an abhorrent act which we condemn outright”.

He said: “I offer my deepest condolences to Mr Zaidi’s family and his immediate community.

“I call upon the Pakistani authorities to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.

“I also urge everyone, especially those in positions of authority, to redouble our efforts to seek greater unity and understanding between Muslim sisters and brothers around the world.”

Karachi police spokesman Qamar Zaib Satti said a special team had been formed to find the culprits, with a reward of two million rupees (£15,000) offered for information leading to their arrest.

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