KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Unidentified gunmen shot and killed a former military officer in Afghanistan’s northern Faryab province amid a rise in mysterious killings.
The ex-officer, identified as Kamaluddin, was killed when assailants opened fire at him with a Kalashnikov rifle in Faryab’s Maimana city on Sunday afternoon, August 25, a local source said.
According to the source, the 54-year-old had served as a police officer during the republic government, which collapsed following the Taliban takeover of the country in August 2021.
The motive behind the murder remains unknown.
Taliban’s provincial authorities confirmed the killing. Shamsullah Mohammadi, Taliban’s head of Information and Culture directorate in Faryab, said three suspects have been arrested in connection to the killing.
This incident is the latest in mysterious killings and criminal activities that have surged across Afghanistan in recent years, often involving Taliban members as perpetrators.
The country’s citizens are increasingly concerned about their safety and security, which adds to the mounting challenges they face since the Taliban’s takeover, despite the Taliban’s claims of maintaining security.
Tens of thousands of former members of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) which included the former government’s army, special forces, national police, and intelligence service fled to neighboring countries as the Taliban seized power in August 2021.
By some accounts, some 30,000 soldiers fled to Iran to escape the risk of being hunted down by the Taliban. Many others took refuge in neighboring Pakistan.
Rights groups say the Taliban have arrested, tortured, and killed former soldiers and employees of the previous government. The group has, however, repeatedly denied such accusations.
