March 2, 2011 -- Updated 0726 GMT (1526 HKT)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Police say the minister was leaving his home when he was attacked
- Bhatti in the past has been critical of Pakistan's blasphemy law
Islamabad, Pakistan -- Shahbaz Bhatti, the federal Minister of Minorities Affairs, was shot and killed in Islamabad Wednesday, Pakistani police and hospital officials said.
Bhatti, in the past has been critical of Pakistan's blasphemy law and is a Christian member of Pakistan's cabinet.
He was leaving his home when unknown gunmen sprayed
his vehicle with bullets, said Jameel Hashmi, a senior Islamabad police official.
his vehicle with bullets, said Jameel Hashmi, a senior Islamabad police official.
He was dead when he arrived at Shifa Hospital in Islamabad, said Azmat Ullah Qureshi, a hospital spokesman.
It was not immediately clear why Bhatti was killed, but in the past officials have been targeted for opposing Pakistan's blasphemy law.
The blasphemy law makes it a crime punishable by death to insult Islam, the Quran or the Prophet Mohammed.
In January, the governor of Pakistan's Punjab province was assassinated by his own security guard because he spoke out against the country's blasphemy law.
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