Unidentified gunmen shot and killed an Afghan journalist, a local spokesman said on Friday, the fifth journalist to be killed in the country in two months.
Conformable The Associated Press, Bismillah Adil Aimaq was driving near Feroz Koh, the capital of Ghor province, traveling home after a visit with his family to a nearby village.
Arif Abir, the governor’s spokesman, said the gunmen then opened fire on the vehicle, killing Aimaq. Abir added that others in the vehicle, including Aimaq’s brother, were injured in the attack.
The PA reported that no group had taken responsibility, and a Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, denied that its members were involved.
Aimaq, who was also known as a human rights activist, worked as the head of the local Radio Sada-e-Ghor station.
The murder followed the death last week of the leader of the journalists’ union in Ghazni province, Rahmatullah Nekzad. The AP reported that he was attacked outside his home by a group of armed men.
Nekzad has contributed reports to the PA since 2007 and has previously worked for Al Jazeera.
In December, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for killing Afghan anchor Malala Maiwand, who was shot as she was leaving her home in Nangarhar province.
Maiwand’s death was preceded by the killing of two Afghan journalists in separate bombings.
Reporters Without Borders this week included Afghanistan among the top five deadliest countries for journalists in 2020, along with Mexico, Iraq, Pakistan and India.
Afghanistan’s Independent Human Rights Commission this week said recent deaths marked an upward trend in targeting Afghan journalists, which the group said had led to self-censorship among local media.
The violence continued even amid peace talks that began in September between the Taliban and the Kabul government, although talks have been suspended until this month.
Reporters Without Borders found this week that several journalists around the world were killed outside the war zones in 2020, most of them deliberately targeted.
Of the 50 journalists killed last year, 34 were in countries not involved in armed conflict. The number of journalists killed outside the war zones has exceeded those in conflict zones since 2016.
The 2020 report also found that 42 journalists were deliberately targeted in connection with their work. These journalists investigated groups of organized crime, corruption and topics related to environmental issues, such as illegal mining or land grabbing.