A Pakistani mother and four of her children were killed Monday in a suspected arson attack on their home outside London, police said. Sabah Usmani and her sons Sohaib, 11, and Rayan, six, as well as 12-year-old daughter Hira, died in their end-of-terrace home in Harlow, Essex, in what firefighters described as “harrowing scenes”. A third son, Muneeb, nine, died in hospital while Maheen, a three-year-old girl, remains in a critical condition in a specialist burns unit. “In the history of Essex Police, seldom has there been an incident of this gravity, in which five people, four of them children, have lost their lives,” Assistant Chief Constable of Essex Police Gary Beautridge told a press conference. Detective Superintendent Rob Vinson said the police were investigating “to see whether this fire was started deliberately”.
The children’s father Abdul Shakoor “fought hard to save his family in appalling conditions”, Beautridge said. Shakoor, who works as a doctor, was treated for minor injuries. Originally from Karachi, the family lived in Saudi Arabia for more than a decade before moving to Manchester and then the town of Harlow in Essex. Firefighters said some kind of fuel may have been used to ignite the house since the blaze spread so quickly, starting downstairs and soon reaching the family asleep upstairs. A burning car was also found near the house, and although it did not belong to the family, it too is being treated as arson. Police said the family may not have been the intended target of the attack. Parvez Hamid, 43, who knew the couple since they moved to Harlow, said: “The Asian community is very tight-knit in this area and we are all in shock. “Their children were so well behaved and I was always envious that mine weren’t the same,” Hamid said. The children’s mother was also a doctor who stayed home to take care of her children.
This is a horrible incident in a safe and probably a heaven place for Asian migrants.We condemn this supected arson attacks in London,nearby location.We protest over this btrutal killings and express our deep concern that Pakistanis are not safe in U.K. Where are Amnesty International Organisations and why they are kept silence over this incident.We appeal to the Government of Pakistan to declare 3 days mourning in the country and make strong protest to the Government of U.K.If something is happened in Pakistan,the International medias immediately come forward and starts protesting and condemnations,now why they are kept calm over the brutal killings innocent Pakistani family.U.k is not a safe place now as it was prapogated before.In Europe itselt is the place and growing places for developing english terrorism and Muslims are for nothing allegated.We urge the English government to probe in this sad incident and the whole world cummunity must be informed abou this unhuman incidents and stern and strong precausion measurement must be taken for future.Our sympathies are with the family and pray to Allah Talla that they may get a place in the paradise amd very shameful and unhuman behaviour by the English government and wish a complte enquiry in the matter.
I request the media to highlight the incident positively. If the media highlight the false incidents e.g. the video of Swat showing the girl torturing by Taliban why they don't give courage to such incidents. We really condemn such brutality in any part of the world including Pakistan.
it may have been an attack or an accident, but one thing sure, The police will get the cause and catch the culprits unlike Pakistan. So stop comparing UK with Pakistan, where hundredes if not thousends murdered daily, while in UK it can be 2-4 such incidents in a year!
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