New report says Mohammad Abdul-Nasser Khayat killed by family, not World Cup gunfire
The Syrian national who died Monday was killed by a relative, not celebratory World Cup gunfire, a security source told The Daily Star on Wednesday.
Mohammad Abdul-Nasser Khayat, 40, was shot in the head at his apartment after a dispute with a family member, the source said noting that local authorities have determined the gun was pointed directly at the victim’s head when it was fired at close range.
This information rules out a stray bullet from the celebrations, the source said. Earlier reports blamed his death on celebratory gunfire after Germany’s national team won against Portugal in Monday’s World Cup match.
The reports turned out to have originated from Khayyat’s family, who told police that a stray bullet had hit Khayat, killing him immediately, the article added.
Police investigators discovered that the bullet entered Khayyat’s head from the side, not the top, as would have been expected if it had been a stray bullet. Moreover, the flesh around the entry wound was cauterized, indicating it was fired from less than three meters away.
A motive remains unclear and investigations are ongoing. Police speculated that the dispute was either over the World Cup, or related to the Syrian crisis.
The Internal Security Forces released a statement Tuesday calling on citizens to refrain from celebratory gunfire or fireworks. Such acts, according to the statement, “sometimes result in deaths or injuries, or troubles between one neighborhoods’ residents, and disturb other citizens and spread fear and panic among them.”
The statement also announced that those who commit these acts will be subject to arrest and legal punishment.