Naeem Rashid ISLAMABAD, Mar 17 (Agencies): A Pakistani man, who died trying to tackle the New Zealand mosques attacker, will be honoured posthumously with a national award, Prime Minister Imran Khan has said.
Naeem Rashid, 49, was among nine Pakistanis killed in the attacks on two mosques in Christchurch on Friday.
"Pakistan is proud of Mian Naeem Rashid who was martyred trying to tackle the white supremacist terrorist and his courage will be recognised with a national award," Khan wrote on Twitter on Sunday, while extending support to the families of the Pakistani victims.
Rashid, originally from Abbottabad in Pakistan, was "badly wounded" in the attack on the Al Noor mosque after he tried "overpowering the shooter", the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis said in a series of Twitter posts.
He was rushed to the hospital but died "due to indiscriminate firing", the ministry added.
Rashid's 21-year-old son Talha Naeem was also killed in the attack, Pakistan's foreign ministry said.
Mohammad Faisal, a spokesman for the ministry, said both the deceased would be buried in Christchurch and arrangements for the burial are in place.
At least 50 people, hailing from Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Bangladesh, Turkey, Indonesia and Malaysia were killed, when 28-year-old Australian Brenton Tarrant opened fire at Al Noor and Linwood mosques.
It was the deadliest mass shooting in the country's modern history.
Five Indian nationals were among the 50 worshippers killed in the Christchurch mosque attacks, with at least two others reported to be injured, officials said Sunday.
India's embassy in New Zealand confirmed the deaths in a tweet, following the devastating shootings at twin mosques in the normally peaceful city.
Three of the dead from the mass shooting at Al Noor mosque were from Gujarat state. They were father and son victims Asif and Ramiz Vora, and 65-year-old retiree Mahboob Khokhar, who was visiting his son in Christchurch.
Six Palestinians were killed in Friday's attack on two New Zealand mosques, the Palestinian Authority's foreign ministry and expatriates said.
In a statement, the ministry said they were able to verify the number despite the "absence of official New Zealand reports" from information gathered from New Zealand's foreign ministry and Red Cross.
The ministry said six other Palestinians were wounded in the attack, and instructed non-resident ambassador to New Zealand Izzat Abdulhadi, (who is also Palestine's ambassador to Australia) to visit the injured and to "provide them with the necessary assistance".
"It is important to note that some of these names may intersect with the lists of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan or lists of other countries because some of them are registered in New Zealand with this nationality or that despite their Palestinian origin," the ministry said in its statement.
Ambassador Abdulhadi said there is a small Palestinian community in Christchurch, but did not give a specific number.
"We are deeply sorry for your loss," Margetts said. "We can't imagine what you are going through, but please know we love you and we are here for you during this incredibly difficult time."
Hamid was a Palestinian refugee in Syria who had immigrated to New Zealand 23 years ago to find a better future, his wife Hanan said.
"It's terrible ... we were hoping to find a better future for us and for the children we were planning to have," Hanan said, as reported by the New Zealand Herald.
She described her 57-year-old husband as a "very kind man", but found it difficult to say more.
"It's hard to talk about him," she said.
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