Zayn Malik 'in absolute bits' over One Direction star Liam Payne's tragic death at 31

Liam Payne, one fifth of world-famous band One Direction, fell to his death in Buenos Aires on Wednesday

Zayn Malik is in 'absolute bits' after the tragic death of his One Direction bandmate Liam Payne.

Liam’s death was announced on Wednesday. The former One Direction hitmaker was holidaying in Buenos Aires with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy when he fell from the third floor of a hotel.

Liam, who was known for being one fifth of the world-famous band, found fame in 2011 after appearing on The X Factor, when judge Simon Cowell placed him in a band with Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Niall Horan.

On Wednesday, a source close to Zayn, 31 has revealed how the Pillowtalk artist has reacted to the horrific news. A US music producer working with Zayn from One Direction has said that that the singer is in 'shock' over Liam's sudden passing.

They added to Mail Online that Zayn's loved ones 'don't want him to be alone' at the moment, so he is 'surrounded by his friends.' "Zayn was told in the early hours of this morning and has been in absolute bits. He is in shock, and his parents have been in touch with Liam’s family to offer their support and condolences. People close to Zayn don’t want him to be alone at the moment, so he is surrounded by friends."

The insider added that it had been some time since Zayn and Liam had spoken' due to 'issues they had with one another in the past.' However, it was said that the former bandmates still 'respected each other from a distance'.

In a tragic turn of events this week, Liam fell from the third floor of a hotel building in the Argentinian capital. Police, firefighters and ambulances were seen outside of a hotel building after Liam tragically fell. Police are said to have been called to reports of a man acting aggressively at the hotel who could be under the effect of drink or drugs.

A body was found in an internal patio of the hotel. The police were called to the hotel by the hotel manager. It's believed that Liam fell from around 13 or 14 metres and suffered "very serious injuries incompatible with life." While City ambulance service provider spokesman Alberto Crescenti said he had fallen around 40 metres and suffered “severe injuries which were incompatible with life.”

In a statement, the local ambulance manager told TN: "At 17.04 through the 911 integrated public safety system, we were alerted of a person who was in an internal courtyard of the management of a south house hotel.

"At 17.11 a SAME team arrived and verified the death of this man and later we found out that he was a singer in a musical group. Unfortunately, he had injuries that were incompatible with life, as a result of his fall, so we had to confirm his death, there was no possibility of resuscitation."

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