2 district officials among 6 killed in Faryab, Laghman

MAIMANA/MEHTARLAM (Pajhwok): Two district officials, including a prosecutor and a crime branch chief, were killed by militants in Khan Cheragh district of northwestern Faryab province while three Afghan Local Police (ALP) died in a roadside bombing in eastern Laghman province, officials said Thursday.

Prosecutor Izatullah and Crime Branch Chief Mohammad Navi Bizhan along with his bodyguard were kidnapped on Wednesday morning.

Taliban in an email to Pajhwok Afghan News claimed killing the two officials after kidnapping them. Taliban Spokesman Qari Yousuf Ahmadi said the abducted bodyguard was still under investigation by militants.

He said that a pick-up, a satellite device, two Kalashnikovs, a pistol and some ammunition were also seized by rebels. Khan Chiragh district chief, Mohammad Akbar Irkin, said initial report showed the two officials were killed by militants.

He said later they received information that the corpses of the officials were transferred to Dasht-I-Laili area and the bodies were still not handed over to them by Taliban.

Also in Faryab, a driver for the Save of Children organization was gunned down in Pashton Kot district.

Maj. Mohammad Aman, district crime branch chief, said the driver was shot dead by militants after he tried to escape from his car.

Another officer of the organization was kidnapped but released following mediation by local elders, he added.

Wishing anonymity, an officer of the organization confirmed that the driver Mohammad Akbar was killed while another official of the organization Sulaiman had been released after his brief abduction.

Separately, three ALP members were killed and four others injured in a roadside bombing in Badpash district of Laghman province. Sarhadi Zwak, the governor’s spokesman, said that the incident took place on Thursday morning when an ALP ranger hit a roadside bomb in Waschi Palosi area of the district.

Three ALP members, including their commander, were killed and four others wounded in the blast, he said, adding an investigation into the incident was underway.

No one has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.

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