KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – A well-known political activist and religious scholar, Mohammad Baqer Etemadi, and a man were killed in separate incidents in western Herat province, local sources reported.
According to sources, the first incident occurred on Saturday evening in the Jebrael township of Herat, where Etemadi was killed by a neighbor following a dispute over children playing in the street. The altercation started when the children began fighting, and Etemadi, who was reportedly attempting to mediate, became engaged in an argument with the neighbor. During the confrontation, he was struck on the head with a stone, sustaining fatal injuries. His body was later taken to the Herat Forensic Medicine Department.
Local Taliban authorities have not publicly commented on the incident. One source said an individual had been detained in connection with Etemadi’s killing.
The sources said that Etemadi was a prominent figure in Herat. During Afghanistan’s previous government, he ran for a seat in the Herat provincial council and served as an advisor to the office of the Chief Executive, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah. He was also reportedly the head of the office of Hezb-e Wahdat-e-Islami Afghanistan (Islamic Unity Party of Afghanistan) in Herat.
In a separate incident on Sunday, 55-year-old Najibullah Sultani was shot dead by unknown assailants in the Meshwani neighborhood of Herat city. Sources said Sultani, a shopkeeper, was on his way from home to his shop when two individuals on a motorcycle opened fire on him. The motive for the killing remains unclear, and Taliban authorities have not commented.
The killings come amid increasing reports of targeted and violent crimes across Afghanistan, raising concerns over deteriorating security despite Taliban claims of restored stability since their return to power in 2021.
