Pakistan murder: Khalil Dale question raised by MSP

Dumfriesshire MSP Elaine Murray is to ask the Scottish government what information it had been given about aid worker Khalil Dale prior to his murder.

She says ministers were in contact with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office after the former Dumfries nurse was kidnapped in Pakistan in January.

It was feared too much publicity could undermine release efforts but his body was found at the weekend.

Ms Murray said it was important all information about the case was known.

Mr Dale's body was found in Quetta - where he had been working with the Red Cross - on Sunday.

The Dumfriesshire MSP is to ask First Minister Alex Salmond if he has any information which can "shed some light on what happened" and "what actions were taken" to try to secure Mr Dale's release.

The UK government and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have already said every effort was made to free Mr Dale.

Pakistan's High Commissioner to the UK Wajid Shamsul Hasan has described Mr Dale's killing as a "dastardly act" by "barbaric terrorists".

He said authorities were investigating exactly who had carried out the killing, but that it was a very "murky" situation.

Mr Dale, a Muslim convert originally named Ken, was born in York and raised in Manchester. He lived in Dumfries since 1974.

After qualifying as a nurse in the UK, he worked in humanitarian aid for 30 years in places such as Somalia, Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq.

His final posting was as a health programme manager in Pakistan for the Red Cross.