Young Australian girl killed by police in Chakwal, Pakistan after family mistaken for robbers

A teenage Australian girl was shot dead by police in Pakistan after officers mistook her family’s rental car for armed robbers.

Nine-year-old Hania Ahmed, her father Adeel Ahmed, her mother Dr. He along with Sidra Khan and her brother Aafan Ahmed went to Chakwal and visited their relatives when the police opened fire on their vehicle, believing them to be criminals.

Accordingly local media reportsWhen the family arrived at a relative’s house around 11.40pm on Wednesday, they were confronted by two armed robbers on motorcycles demanding jewellery.

A relative living on the property, Ms Khan’s uncle Ali Ejaz, said the family handed over about $7,500 worth of jewellery.

The robbery is understood to have been witnessed by a police officer who ran to his station to collect the firearm before returning to the scene.

Authorities claimed that the robbers engaged in a gunfight with the police officer before fleeing on their motorbike.

As chaos ensued, Mr Ahmed tried to get his family to safety. However, local media reports stated that the police believed that the escaping vehicle belonged to the robbers and opened fire.

“When the police saw the vehicle immediately driving away, they thought it belonged to the robbers and opened fire at the vehicle indiscriminately,” a police official said.

Mr Ahmed managed to drive towards the door of another family member’s house before losing control of the car and crashing.

The family was taken to the District Central Hospital, where Hania died.

Mr Ahmed and his son Aafan were transferred to Benazir Bhutto Hospital Rawalpindi where they underwent surgery.

Mr Ahmed was later discharged, while his son remained in hospital to recover from his injuries. Dr Sidra Khan was not injured.