A German network reported on Thursday that the Taliban had killed a relative of one of their journalists and injured another family member.
According to reports, the Taliban had gone door to door looking for a Deutsche Welle journalist, although the media said the person is currently in Germany. In the middle of the search, the insurgent group shot two relatives of the journalist, whom Deutsche Welle did not identify.
The German news media said other relatives were able to escape quickly.
Deutsche Welle director Peter Limbourg issued a statement on Thursday urging the German government to act, saying: “The assassination of a relative of one of our journalists by the Taliban is [incredibly] tragic and a test of the imminent danger to which all our workers and their families in Afghanistan are exposed, “according to The Associated Press.
“It is clear that the Taliban are conducting organized searches for journalists in Kabul and the provinces. Time is running out. “
Deutsche Welle also reported that the insurgent group had been looking for three more journalists and had searched their homes.
The reports highlight the anxieties faced by journalists and others as they work within the country under the newly re-established Taliban regime.
Journalists have been targets of the Taliban in the past, and some are worried that they will be persecuted again despite the promises of the insurgent group seeking peace.
Radio Azadi’s head of Kabul’s office told the New York Times in an interview “Journalists are left behind, “although they are eligible to leave Afghanistan on a U.S. visa.
Writing on behalf of the Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal, the Post’s editor, Fred Ryan, wrote to the national security adviser Jake Sullivan
Jake Sullivan: The Afghanistan disaster puts intelligence under control Night energy: the US bans the use of pesticides linked to health problems in children. Former Afghan women’s soccer captain: remove photos, “get rid of national team uniform” MORE on Monday, calling on the U.S. to safely withdraw its journalists, support staff and families to protect them from possible Taliban threats.
“The urgent request on behalf of the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post is that our 204 journalists, support staff and families be transported by the US military from the civilian side of Kabul Airport. to the military side of the airport where they can be safe while waiting for evacuation flights, ”Ryan wrote. “They are currently in danger and need the US government to bring them to safety. Please inquire about the best way to proceed.”
These calls for a safe passage from Afghanistan were also echoed this week by a bipartisan group of lawmakers who wrote in President Biden
Joe BidenBriahna Joy Gray: Democrats play “chicken game” with Infrastructure bills Overnight Defense: The top general acknowledges that intelligence lost the speed of the Afghan collapse. Biden will demand vaccination against COVID-19 of all staff in the residences | Democrats accept COVID mandates in MORE governorship races, calling on the administration to ensure that journalists and their Afghan counterparts have been safely evacuated from the country.