TOLO News reporter Ziar Yaad was killed by the Taliban in Kabul and his cameraman beaten up by the Taliban, the news channel said in a tweet. It said that Yaad and the cameraman were reporting on poverty, unemployment at Haji Yaqub intersection in the capital. TOLO News is Afghanistan's leading news channel.
Meanwhile, a tweet from the reporter's unverified Twitter handle said, "I was beaten by the Taliban in Kabul's New City while reporting. Some people have spread the news of my death which is false."
Earlier in July, Danish Siddiqui, an Indian photojournalist working for an international news agency, was killed in Kandahar. Siddiqui had been in Kandahar covering the situation in the region after the US forces pulled out of Afghanistan recently.
According to reports, Siddiqui was embedded with Afghan forces that came under attack by the Taliban in Spin Boldak district of Kandahar province. Siddiqui, who worked for Reuters and was based in Mumbai, was also awarded the prestigious Pulitzer Prize.
The incidents of violence in Afghanistan have become frequent since the Taliban declared that it has captured the capital city of Kabul on August 15. Although the terror outfit has promised to secure the rights of women and children, disturbing visuals have surfaced where Taliban fighters are seen beating women and children.
Taliban's capture of Afghanistan after the fall of the government brings an end to a two-decade campaign in which the US and its allies had tried to transform the country. The war began after the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. The US government's decision to exit from Afghanistan allowed Taliban fighters to gather strength and move quickly to seize power.
