February 12, 2021
Maimana- Unidentified gunmen shot and wounded Qutbuddin Kohi, a journalist working for Pajhwok News agency in northern Faryab province yesterday.
Alauddin Erkin a journalist in Faryab told AFJC that Kohi was on the way to his home when he was attacked by unidentified armed men in a busy Bazar on Thursday evening in the provincial capital Maimana and the attacker then fled the scene.
“Kohi was transferred to the hospital in critical condition after being shot several times,’ he added
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the journalist.
“Police has instructed to immediately investigate the incident and bring the perpetrators to justice,” Faryab police spokesman Abdul Karim Yurish said.
Meanwhile, Naqibullah Faiq Frayab’s governor visiting Kohi at the provincial hospital said that the journalist has received treatment and is scheduled to be transferred to Kabul for further medical treatment.
AFJC executive director Ahmad Quraishi condemns the attack on Qutbudin Kohi saying “it is aimed at undermining the work of journalists in Afghanistan.”
"The attack on Qutbuddin Kohi is an indicator that the Afghan government has not been able to reverse the country's appalling record of violence against journalists and media organizations despite pledges to do so," Quraishi said
“We demand swift action from Afghan authorities to bring those responsible for this crime to justice,’ he added
The incident comes amid an upsurge of violence by the terrorist and criminal groups including the Taliban and IS groups across the country since the peace deal was signed between the US and Taliban in February 2019. These attacks have had a devastating impact on Afghanistan’s vulnerable civic space, press freedom, and related democratic rights.
On the first day of 2021, local journalist Bismillah Adel Aimaq was killed in an attack by unknown armed men in the central Ghor province. Earlier in December, Rahmatullah Nikzad a freelance was killed in a targeted attack in Southeastern Ghazni province, and Malala Maywand a female TV presenter, and her driver Tahirkhan in Eastern Nangarhar province.