Another incident against Asim Munir critic: 'Mysterious fire' at Pak journalist's US house; internet sees 'troubling pattern'

The US house of Pakistani journalist and vocal Asim Munir critic Moeed Pirzada caught fire last week under mysterious circumstances, leading to strong speculations on social media about possible foulplay.

The timing has raised questions as the incident came just days after two other prominent critics of the Pakistan military establishment — Adil Raja and Shehzad Akbar — reported attacks and break-ins over the past week.

Raja had posted on X in December that some unknown assailants broke into his house in London and ransacked the property. A similar incident took place earlier when unknown men broke into former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s adviser Shahzad Akbar's house in Cambridge and brutally assaulted him.

The fire at Pirzada’s house has added to the alarm as he is the third known Munir critic and Imran Khan supporter to report a serious incident in recent days.

The developments also come against the backdrop of a fresh legal crackdown in Pakistan. On Friday, a Pakistani anti-terrorism court sentenced eight journalists and social media commentators to life imprisonment in absentia, convicting them in terrorism-related cases linked to online activity in support of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan. The list of those convicted included former military officers-turned YouTubers Adil Raja and analyst Moeed Pirzada.

With the Grace of God, I and my daughters are safe! Terribly stressed but Safe! Thanks to all who called, texted and tweeted with their concerns! As yet, we don’t understand what exactly happened. I left home for a dinner, after 8:30pm. My wife is in the UK, daughters were home,… https://t.co/K1fX7p97yO

— Moeed Pirzada (@MoeedNj) January 4, 2026

In a post on X, Pirzada said that he does not know how the fire started and stopped short of "speculation".

"With the Grace of God, I and my daughters are safe! Terribly stressed but Safe! Thanks to all who called, texted and tweeted with their concerns! As yet, we don’t understand what exactly happened. I left home for a dinner, after 8:30pm. My wife is in the UK, daughters were home, after 9:30 or so I got a frantic call from daughter informing me of fire, but she was smart to call 911, & police brought Fire Brigade. They quickly controlled it; fire damaged Garage, inner wall, & Attic. But we were lucky!" he posted on X.

However, he added that no such incident had taken place in his locality for the last three years.

" ... Not clear what exactly happened, living in this locality for three years plus, nothing like that happened before, but I won’t speculate, we will find out. But it’s a very safe area & the speed of response & effectiveness once again proved that system works in the way it has been designed," he said.

The incident sparked speculations on social media about the possible indirect involvement of Pakistani deep state.

"First Shehzad Akbar,then Adil Raja,now Moeed Pirzada—03 cases in just 10 days involving critics of corrupt Pak Army facing intimidation or danger beyond Pak borders," remarked one user.

One said: "Pirzada is a vocal critic of Asim Munir. This follows a troubling pattern cited by activists: Shehzad Akbar, Adil Raja, Now Moeed Pirzada. Three incidents involving overseas critics in ~10 days raise serious questions about transnational intimidation by Pakistan under Asim Munir ... Dissent and criticism is a crime, Asim Munir doesn't tolerate, he crushes brutally."

During Operation Sindoor, Pirzada had busted Pakistan's misleading claims of victory during the military escalation with India. In a video message, he quoted an article in The New York Times to say that India's missiles accurately struck targers in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. "India used BrahMos, and they precisely hit wherever they wanted," he said.