Web Desk: The head of the Taliban administration’s Information and Culture Department in Afghanistan’s northeastern Badakhshan province was killed in a gun attack on Tuesday, provincial security officials said, in the latest security incident to hit the region.
Zabihullah Amiri died after two armed men on a motorcycle opened fire on him in Baharak district while he was traveling to his office, according to Ehsanullah Kamgar, spokesperson for the Badakhshan security command.
One of Amiri’s bodyguards sustained minor injuries in the attack, Kamgar said.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Taliban police in Badakhshan said the attack occurred on the Baharak-Faizabad highway as Amiri was on his way to work.
Security forces exchanged fire with the assailants after the attack, Kamgar said. One attacker was killed during the confrontation, while the second was arrested. The detained suspect is receiving medical treatment, he added.
However, authorities have not established a motive for the attack. Local Taliban officials said investigators were examining multiple aspects of the incident.
So far, no individual or group has claimed responsibility.
Moreover, the Taliban police spokesperson declined to say whether investigators suspected links between the attackers and armed groups opposed to the Taliban administration.
Amiri was considered one of the Taliban administration’s prominent media officials and had led Badakhshan’s Information and Culture Department for several years.
The killing comes as Badakhshan continues to experience periodic security unrest.
Separately, the anti-Taliban armed group Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) said its fighters had been engaged in clashes with Taliban forces in Badakhshan over the past three days. Reuters could not independently verify the group’s claim.
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