Islamabad, April 7 (NationPress) A transgender individual, known as Sara, was tragically murdered in Peshawar, located in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, following her rejection of a friendship proposal from a man. Reports suggest that she also faced extortion demands from him.

The horrific event unfolded outside a plaza in Peshawar's Faqirabad area, where the attackers, riding a motorcycle, shot Sara multiple times—between six and seven rounds, as reported by 'The Express Tribune'. She was rushed to Lady Reading Hospital but unfortunately succumbed to her injuries.

Originally from Afghanistan, Sara had lived in Kohat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for several years before relocating to Peshawar approximately five to six years ago. Her body could not be repatriated to Afghanistan due to missing documentation, leading to her burial at Rahman Baba Cemetery under the supervision of law enforcement and the transgender community, as detailed by the newspaper.

According to preliminary investigations, Sara's murder stemmed from her refusal of Adam's friendship. The local police, represented by Faqirabad SP Resham Jahangir, indicated that the suspect had previously been friends with Sara, and the incident arose when she chose to distance herself from him.

A close associate of the alleged perpetrator has been detained, and authorities are actively seeking to apprehend the main suspect. Jahangir also highlighted that a financial dispute may have contributed to the crime, as the accused reportedly invested a significant amount of money in Sara, which could have triggered a conflict when he sought repayment. An FIR has been filed regarding the incident.

Farzana from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Shemale Association expressed deep concern, stating, "This is a devastating incident. Transgender individuals in the province face regular violence and are often denied opportunities to engage in social events."

Transgender rights activist Arzu, associated with TransAction Alliance Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, revealed that since 2015, 170 transgender individuals have been murdered in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and over 700 have sustained injuries from violent assaults. Alarmingly, justice remains elusive for most perpetrators.

Earlier this year, an incident involving Bindiya Rana underscored the escalating violence against the transgender community in Pakistan. Rana was attacked at her residence while sharing tea with another trans woman, Zehrish Khanzadi, who works for the Gender Alliance Interactive (GIA), an advocacy group for transgender rights.

As Rana unlocked her door remotely from the kitchen, three gunshots rang out. The attackers fled, and she narrowly escaped the gunfire, as Khanzadi recounted to 'The Guardian'.

Rana, who leads GIA, and Khanzadi, an activist, quickly filed a police complaint against the assailants, highlighting the constant dangers that trans communities in Pakistan face. "Those who protect others are now under siege," Khanzadi remarked.

The shooting incident on January 19 marked another grim chapter in the series of violent attacks against transgender individuals in Pakistan. In a particularly alarming case from September, Nadira, a transgender woman begging at Sea View beach in Karachi, was assaulted with a knife after turning down a man's advances.

"I told him I’m a beggar, not a sex worker, but he wouldn’t listen," Nadira, who is HIV-positive, recounted. Despite sustaining a stab wound to her abdomen, she managed to save her bag containing Pakistani Rupees (PKR) 2,500. Just two days later, three transgender women were shot in Karachi's outskirts.

Data from GIA reveals a worrying trend: 55 transgender killings in Sindh province between 2022 and September 2023 alone, with 17 occurring in Karachi. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, local elders have been pressuring trans women to leave their communities, accusing them of corrupting the youth. Recently, about 200 individuals—including four transgender people—were arrested during a dance event in Swabi, as reported by 'The Guardian'.