(RFE/RL) -- A tribal elder in Afghanistan’s southern Zabul Province was kidnapped late on December 3 and found dead the next day, RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan reported.
Haji Omar Khan’s body was found in the Shinkai district of Zabul. No one has claimed responsibility, but officials are blaming Taliban militants.
Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashari told RFE/RL that the killers will be brought to justice.
“The main reason for such an attack is that some of these tribal elders are trying to bring security to their region, and they support the Afghan government,” Bashari said. “So the insurgents attack them. They know these elders are important for security.”
Separately, an official delegation from Kandahar arrived in Tarin Kot, the capital of Uruzgan Province, to investigate a clash between the Afghan police and the army that took place on December 4.
The top commander in Uruzgan, Juma Gul Himmat, told RFE/RL that he didn’t know the cause of the clash. Doctors said one person died and six were injured.