Australian child shot dead in Pakistan as police wrongly identify family as thieves

A police officer in Pakistan's Punjab province has been arrested after an Australian girl was killed and two members of her family injured in what authorities described as a mistaken shooting during a robbery response.According to Punjab Police, officers responding to reports of a robbery on Wednesday exchanged fire with armed suspects who had allegedly stopped a family's vehicle and were holding its occupants at gunpoint.

Police said an officer mistakenly believed the suspects were attempting to flee in the family's car and opened fire. "In the ensuing chaos, the officer involved mistakenly assessed that the suspects were attempting to flee in the victims' vehicle and discharged his weapon," Punjab Police's Crime Control Department said in a statement on Sunday.The shooting killed Hania, whom Punjab Police identified as 10 years old, and injured her father and brother. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, however, said the victim was nine years old.Punjab Police said a criminal complaint had been registered based on the father's statement and that the officer involved had been arrested and remanded in custody by a court.Australian media reported that the family, from Perth, had been visiting relatives in Pakistan when the incident occurred.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Albanese called for a transparent investigation. "Our government expects there to be transparency and a proper investigation of these circumstances," he said, adding that multiple members of the family had been injured in what he described as "dire" circumstances.Australia's foreign affairs ministry said it was providing consular assistance to the family of the Australian citizen who was killed and the two relatives who were wounded.Punjab Police said a "thorough, impartial investigation" was under way. "We are deeply saddened by this tragedy. While our personnel operate in high-risk environments, there is no justification for a departure from our protocols," the force said.