Guwahati News Desk: More concerns arise regarding Taliban’s ability to govern the country and their promise of providing freedom to press, after two distressing images of journalists displaying injuries sustained after being beaten by the Taliban, surfaced on social media.
At least two such images have surfaced, that have been shared by verified Twitter handles, including one by Marcus Yam (a foreign correspondent for the Los Angeles Times) and another by Etilaatroz (an Afghan news publication).
Images tweeted by Yam showcase two men stripped to their innerwear, standing with their backs to the camera, and their backs and legs covered with what appeared to be red welts and bruises.
In the images tweeted by Etilaatroz, the close-up of the injuries of the same two men have been showcased.
Meanwhile, the two men in the pictures are said to be Taqi Daryabi and Nematullah Naqdi.
According to Etilaatroz, Daryabi and Naqdi, a video editor and a reporter, respectively, were covering a protest led by women in the Kart-e-Char area of western Kabul on Wednesday, when they were abducted by the Taliban, taken to different rooms and beaten and tortured.
Infact, Naqdi went ahead and told the media, “One of the Taliban put his foot on my head, crushed my face against the concrete. They kicked me in the head… I thought they were going to kill me.”
Stating that he was accosted by a Taliban fighter as soon as he started taking pictures of the rally by women demanding the right to work and education, he said, “They told me ‘You cannot film’… They arrested all those who were filming and took their phones. The Taliban started insulting me, kicking me.”
He also added that when he asked why he was being beaten, he was told, “You are lucky you weren’t beheaded”.
Moreover, even three other journalists, including the local head of Euronews, a pan-European TV news network headquartered in France, were also abducted. However, they were later released unharmed, although the Euronews head was repeatedly slapped.
In addition, several other journalists were also arrested, including TOLO News cameraperson Waheed Ahmady and Ariana News reporter Sami Jahesh, with cameraman Samim, as they covered the protests.
Photo | WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images
