‘FATHER OF PAKISTAN’S NUCLEAR BOMB’ ABDUL QADEER KHAN DIES

Sun 10 October 2021:

Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, a prominent nuclear scientist in Pakistan, died on Sunday after his health deteriorated.

Dr. Khan is regarded as the father of Pakistan’s nuclear program and is hailed as a hero at home for developing the Muslim world’s first nuclear weapon.

Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan’s health began to deteriorate on Saturday night, and he was taken to the KRL hospital in an ambulance at 6:00 a.m. on Sunday morning.

According to sources, the nuclear physicist had difficulty breathing and was taken to the hospital. His condition, however, took a turn for the worst when his lungs began to bleed.

Doctors tried their best to save the renowned scientist’s life but were unable to do so, resulting in his death at 7:04am. Doctors have said Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan passed away as his lungs collapsed.

The hospital administration is trying to make arrangements to shift Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan’s body to his E-7 residence. His funeral prayers will be offered at the Faisal Mosque in Islamabad at 3:30pm, said his family.

Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan ( A Q Khan) with his wife and daughter, seemingly in a better condition.

Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan became a national hero overnight, not only in Pakistan but in the Islamic world as well, when in May 1998 Pakistan gave a befitting response to India by conducting its nuclear tests.

Following the tests, Pakistan became the sole nuclear power in the Muslim world and the seventh country to possess nuclear weapons. Pakistan’s nuclear weapons have kept Indian aggression in check.

Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, a distinguished Pakistani metallurgist and nuclear physicist, was born on April 1, 1936, in Bhopal, India.

He was one of the many people who moved to Pakistan with their families in 1947.

Khan is commonly considered as the “Father of the Islamic Nuclear Bomb” or the “Father of Gas-Centerrifuge Enrichment Technology” for Pakistan’s nuclear deterrence program, having built the Muslim world’s first atomic bomb.

In 1967, he earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering from a university in the Netherlands, and later earned a PhD in metallurgical engineering from a Belgian university.

He was arrested in 2004 for illegally sharing nuclear technology with Iran, Libya and North Korea.

The revelations that he passed on nuclear secrets to other countries shocked Pakistan.

In a televised address, Dr Khan offered his “deepest regrets and unqualified apologies”.

Dr Khan was pardoned by Pakistan’s then-president, Pervez Musharraf, but he was held under house arrest until 2009.

The leniency of his treatment angered many in the West, where he has been dubbed “the greatest nuclear proliferator of all time”.

Prime Minister Imran Khan praised Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan by saying that he was, for the people of Pakistan, “a national icon”.

“Deeply saddened by the passing of Dr A Q Khan. He was loved by our nation bec of his critical contribution in making us a nuclear weapon state. This has provided us security against an aggressive much larger nuclear neighbour. For the people of Pakistan he was a national icon,” he tweeted.

Deeply saddened by the passing of Dr A Q Khan. He was loved by our nation bec of his critical contribution in making us a nuclear weapon state. This has provided us security against an aggressive much larger nuclear neighbour. For the people of Pakistan he was a national icon.

— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) October 10, 2021

Islamic scholar Maulana Tariq Jameel prayed for the soul of the deceased and appreciated his services for Pakistan.

“Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan was a precious asset for Pakistan,” he tweeted. “He played a key role in ensuring Pakistan became a nuclear power.”

ڈاکٹر عبدالقدیر خان کے انتقال پر بہت دکھی ہوں. وہ ہمارا قیمتی سرمایہ تھے جنہوں نے پاکستان کو ایٹمی قوت بنانے میں اہم کردار ادا کیا. اللہ ان کی مغفرت فرمائے اور جنت الفردوس میں اعلیٰ مقام عطا فرمائے.#tariqjamil

— Tariq Jamil (@TariqJamilOFCL) October 10, 2021