Nader Shah Sahibzada, a reporter for Voice of Gardiz local radio, went missing on Friday and authorities found his dead body on Saturday near his home in capital city, Gardiz.<\/p>\n
Ariana News Agency-\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Initial autopsy reports suggest that Sahibzada has been severely tortured and stabbed to death.<\/p>\n Aminullah Amiri, an editor of the Voice of Gardiz radio, told VOA that Sahibzada was running entertainment shows at the station and had no conflicts with anyone, suggesting he may have been killed because of his work.<\/p>\n Sardar Wali Tabassum, the provincial police spokesperson, told VOA that an investigation has been launched into the killing of Sahibzada and efforts are under way to bring those responsible for his death to justice.<\/p>\n Sahibzada\u2019s case is not an isolated incident. According to media advocacy groups in Afghanistan, so far this year seven local journalists have been killed by unknown armed men.<\/p>\n No group has immediately claimed responsibility for Sahibzada\u2019s killing, but late last month the Taliban warned Afghan media outlets that if they do not stop what the militant group called \u201canti-Taliban statements\u201d, they would be targeted.<\/p>\n \u201cThose who continue doing so will be recognized by the group as military targets who are helping the Western-backed government of Afghanistan,\u201d the insurgent group said in a statement.<\/p>\n \u201cReporters and staff members will not remain safe,\u201d the statement added.<\/p>\n Both U.S. and Afghanistan condemned Taliban\u2019s threats against the Afghan media outlets.<\/p>\n \u201cFreedom of expression and attacks on media organizations is in contradiction to human and Islamic values,\u201d Afghan President Ashraf Ghani\u2019s office said in a statement.<\/p>\n John Bass, the U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, said in a tweet that the Taliban should stop threatening Afghan journalists.<\/p>\n \u201cMore violence, against journalists or civilians, will not bring security and opportunity to Afghanistan, nor will it help the Taliban reach their political objectives,\u201d Bass said.<\/p>\n Deadliest place for journalists<\/p>\n Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which advocates for freedom of the press around the world, reported that Afghanistan was the world\u2019s deadliest country for journalists in 2018 followed by Syria.<\/p>\n The group said in its annual report in late December that 15 journalists have been killed in Afghanistan and 11 others have been killed in Syria, making both countries the deadliest places for journalists around the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Nader Shah Sahibzada, a reporter for Voice of Gardiz local radio, went missing on Friday and authorities found his dead body on Saturday near his home in capital city, Gardiz.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3639,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_mat_hreflang_tags":[],"addvideo":"","video_duration":"","farsit":"","target":"0","top_stories":"0","top":"1"},"categories":[2,7,12,9],"tags":[39,350],"class_list":["post-3638","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-afghanistan","category-politics","category-security","category-social","tag-afghanistan","tag-journalist-rights"],"acf":{"myctype":"change","target":false,"top_stories":false,"top":true,"farsit":""},"yoast_head":"\n