Cape Town 'assassination' victim identified as Israeli businessman

The Cape Town businessman who was gunned down in the city on Wednesday has been identified as Shafiq Naser, owner of Naser Construction. 

An Israeli citizen in his mid-30s, Naser was killed by a motorcyclist while on his way to work in Century City. He was identified by Middle East Media.

“The death of Naser, from the Arab town of Tira in central Israel, comes almost a year after his cousin, Abdel Fattah Nassar, was also shot and killed while visiting Cape Town.

“That incident was at first reported by the family as an automobile-related fatality, but the foreign ministry then said he had died in a gun battle,” Middle East Media reported.

At the time of that incident, Cape Town fire and rescue spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said: “Upon arrival, it was found there were four vehicles involved in the collision and that one adult male, later found to be shot, was trapped inside his car. 

“A further two adult males were slightly injured and one was declared deceased.” 

In a Facebook post this week, one of Naser’s friends said he helped many people without expecting anything in return. 

An investigation is under way to determine the motive behind the killing.

TimesLIVE