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Ohio University Professor Killed In Pakistan
By: WOUB Staff Writer
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Columbus-area cardiologist and Ohio University professor Dr. Mehdi Ali Qamar was killed in Pakistan on Monday, according to The New York Times.
Qamar was in the country as a hospital volunteer. His wife, sister-in-law and son were with him when he died.
From the report:
“This is a faith-based target killing of a very precious man who was saving humanity,” said Saleem-ud Din, an Ahmadi spokesman. “We want justice.”
It was the second year that Dr. Qamar had volunteered at the Tahir Heart Institute, a hospital specializing in cardiac treatment that is run by the Ahmadi community and treats patients of all faiths. In recent months, religious extremists distributed pamphlets in the area warning Muslims against using the hospital.
“Visiting a doctor or receiving treatment in that hospital is forbidden in Islam and an unforgivable sin,” said one such pamphlet. Mr. Din said the police and other law enforcement agencies had failed to act against those orchestrating the campaign.
A police spokesman said there are no suspects in the case and the motive is unknown, although the hospital at which Dr. Qamar was serving was the target of an "extremist hate campaign," according to the Times.
The Columbus Dispatch reported that Dr. Qamar had taken a three-week sabbatical from Fairfield Medical Center in Lancaster to make a trip he had many times before.
According to Ohio University, Dr. Qamar was a volunteer, adjunct professor at the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. He worked with third- and fourth-year students, who would visit him at Fairfield Medical Center in Lancaster.
Correction: Ohio University originally labeled Dr. Qamar as a full-time staff member but offered a clarification that he was a full-time staff member at Fairfield Medical Center, that he was not full-time with the university.