The terrorist group Daesh has claimed responsibility for the killing of three women working for a local radio and TV station in eastern Afghanistan, the latest in a spike in targeted killings across the war-torn country, while outrage rippled through Afghanistan on Wednesday as funerals were held for the three female media workers.
Journalists, activists and judges have recently been ambushed by gunmen or killed by explosives attached to their vehicles as surging violence forces many into hiding, with some leaving Afghanistan.
The killings have escalated since peace talks began last year between the Afghan government and the Taliban, sparking fears that the insurgents are eliminating perceived opponents.
The three women were shot and killed in two separate attacks after they left the Enikass TV station where they worked, and were on their way home, on Tuesday.
Afghan officials said police arrested the alleged killer of the three women, identifying him as Qari Baser and insisting he was a member of the Taliban, a claim promptly denied by Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid.
Nangarhar police chief, Gen. Juma Gul Hemat, said Baser had used a pistol with a silencer in the attacks. He was arrested shortly after the attacks by police in Jalalabad, the provincial capital.
The Daesh claim, posted late Tuesday, contradicted the Afghan government's accusations against the Taliban. The militants said the three female journalists were targeted because they worked for one of the "media stations loyal to the apostate Afghan government" in Jalalabad.
It was not the first attack against women working at Enikass Radio and TV. In December, Daesh claimed the killing of another female employee there, Malala Maiwand.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani condemned Tuesday's attack, saying that assaults on "innocent compatriots, especially women, are contrary to the teachings of Islam, Afghan culture and the spirit of peace."
Friends and family gathered in Jalalabad to bury their loved ones as they pleaded for an end to the killings.
Mohammad Nazif said his cousin Sadia Sadat was just 18 years old when she was killed on Tuesday, and she had been working at the TV station over the past year to help support her family.
"Her family was very happy for her to work in TV. She had not received any warnings," Nazif told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"I don't know why the militants target such innocent girls. I ask them to stop the targeted killing of media workers."
A colleague at Enikass TV who spoke on condition of anonymity said the station was reeling from the murders, saying the three victims were like "family."
"Three innocent girls were shot dead in the daylight in the middle of the city. Nobody is safe anymore," said the colleague.
The three women dubbed popular and often emotion-laden dramas from Turkey and India into Afghanistan’s local languages of Dari and Pashtu, added Shokrullah Pasoon, the station's news editor.
Enikass Radio and TV is a privately owned outlet that broadcasts "news; various political, social, Islamic, educational, satirical and engaging programs and standard dubbing of serials and movies for the people of Afghanistan," according to its website.
Afghanistan has long been ranked as one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists.
At least nine media workers have been killed since peace talks with the Taliban started in September, according to the Afghan Journalists Safety Committee, bringing the total number of victims to 15 in the last six months, reported The Associated Press (AP).
U.S. officials have blamed the Taliban for the wave of violence, while the Kabul government said the insurgents routinely hide behind Daesh claims to cover their tracks.
The Taliban have denied involvement in most of the targeted killings. Both the Taliban and the government blame the other for staging the attacks to discredit the peace deal or leverage greater concessions.
The Biden administration is reviewing the deal which calls for the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops by May 1. Officials say no decision has been made.