On August 8, 2021, unidentified attackers shot and killed Toofan Omar, a manager at the privately owned Afghan radio station Paktia Ghag Radio, according to Reuters and a representative from Nai, a local press freedom group, who spoke to CPJ.
The attackers shot Omar, who also worked as an officer for Nai and as a prosecutor at the Parwan Detention Facility prison complex, while he was traveling to Kabul from the nearby Parwan province, according to those sources.
He died en route to a hospital, according to a press release, which CPJ reviewed, issued by the Afghan attorney general’s office prior to the Taliban takeover. The gunmen also shot and killed another attorney who accompanied Omar in the car, according to the Nai representative, who spoke to CPJ on the condition of anonymity due to fear of reprisal by the Taliban.
Officials with the former Afghan government suspected the attackers were members of the Taliban, according to Reuters and the Nai representative.
Suhail Shaheen, the Taliban’s spokesperson in Qatar, responded to CPJ’s request for comment via messaging app saying that he did not confirm allegations that Taliban members were involved, and said he would investigate the incident further. He did not respond to follow-up messages from CPJ. Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesperson in Afghanistan, did not respond to CPJ’s request for comment sent via messaging app.
The Nai representative told CPJ that he did not know whether Omar’s killing was related to his work with Paktia Ghag Radio, Nai, or the Parwan Detention Facility.