Etilaat-e Roz reported that their two journalists were taken to a police station and beaten severely with cables before being released.
“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,” Naqdi, a photographer with Etilaat-e-Roz, told AFP.
“The Taliban started insulting me, kicking me,” the other journalist told AFP, adding that they accused him of organising the rally.
A viral image on social media showing the two journalists with injuries on their back and faces caused uproar among netizens and human rights organizations.
“Taliban authorities claimed that they would allow the media to function so long as they ‘respected Islamic values, but they are increasingly preventing journalists from reporting on demonstrations,”
“The Taliban need to ensure that all journalists are able to carry out their work without abusive restrictions or fear of retribution,” said Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a statement today.
