New Delhi: A popular singer from Afghanistan, who was reported to have been assassinated on July 16 in Pakistan where she was residing, is alive. After reports of her death started trending on local media, Hasiba Noori released a video statement saying that she had been in a car accident.
“Nobody in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has threatened me, nor has anyone forced me to give up my singing career. All reports suggesting otherwise are false and fabricated,” she said.
Noori reportedly fled the Taliban regime in 2021 and took refuge in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. News of her assassination, which was first reported by local media in Afghanistan, created a stir in both countries.
Someone took her picture after the car accident, and used it to spread misinformation across various social media platforms, said Noori.
سنگر حسیبہ نور کہتی ہیں میں زندہ ہوں؟
افغان بھائیوں اور بہنوں سے التماس ہے کہ اگر اپکو کو کوئی کہے کہ فلاں بندہ اپکا کان کاٹ کر لے گیا تو برائے مہربانی اس کے پیچھے بھاگنے سے اچھا ہے ایک دفعہ کان پر ہاتھ رکھ چیک کر لیا کریں کہ واقعی،،،#HaseebaNoori #حسیبہ_نوری #Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/QyxtSX9xX5
— Syed Azmat Ali Shah (@syedazmatjmc) July 17, 2023
Who is Noori?
Noori is a renowned Pashtun singer who has been featured on Afghan channels like Ariana Television and AMC TV. She is known for adding a modern twist to traditional folk songs, and is among the many women performers and celebrities who fled the country fearing the oppressive Taliban regime.
“I feel safe and appreciate the support of various media platforms. They have not caused me any distress. My work continues unabated, just as it did in Afghanistan,” the Afghan singer stated.
Her friend and fellow Afghani singer, Khosbo Ahmadi, had posted a picture of her, expressing condolences.
Amidst outroar, there were reports that Pakistan authorities had launched an investigation into her death.
In 2021, an Afghan folk singer Fawad Andarabi was killed by the Taliban in the north of Kabul. His son had informed the media that the singer was ‘shot in the head’ at a family farm in northern Baghlan province.
Afghanistan’s talent drain
Since she fled, Hasiba had been living in Islamabad with her mother and had started performing again. News of her death had sparked outrage in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Farzana Elham Kochai, a former member of Afghan Parliament wrote on Twitter: “We need urgent support for Afghan women and men left in neighbouring countries in need of protection.”
Zarifa Ghafari, former mayor of an Afghan province who now resides in Germany and runs a human rights activist organisation wrote on Twitter, “While condemning the criminal policy on women’s rights in Pakistan and Afghanistan, we ask the international community to change its policy in these areas and stop turning a blind eye to the rights of Afghan women.”
A few Pakistani journalists had reported that the claims of assassination are false.
Malala Yousafzai’s father, Ziauddin also tweeted his condolences on the news. He, however, deleted the tweet when Syed Wiqas Shah, a Pakistani journalist questioned the veracity of the report.
The article has been updated as per the latest reports in Pakistani media.