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Assassination of Former Afghan TV Presenter Draws Outrage

Ayaz Gul

   ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN - Leaders in Afghanistan and the United States have
   strongly condemned Saturday's bomb explosion in the capital, Kabul,
   that killed two senior central bank staffers, one of them a renowned
   former television presenter.

   Police said a "magnetic improvised explosive device" ripped through a
   car carrying the operation deputy of the 'Da Afghanistan Bank,' or DAB,
   and his colleague, Yama Siawash, who formerly worked at the private
   TOLO TV channel. Their driver also was killed in the blast.

   No one immediately claimed credit for the bombing, but the Afghan
   interior ministry swiftly blamed a militant outfit, known as the
   Haqqani network, which is tied to the Taliban insurgency.

   Saturday's attack is the latest in a wave of unexplained, high-profile
   assassinations and targeted killings Kabul has experienced in recent
   weeks.

   Siawash had anchored popular political and current affairs talk shows
   on the country's largest TV network before joining the central bank as
   an adviser to the president, officials said.

   Afghan President Ashraf Ghani condemned the attack and ordered an
   investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice, his office said.

   "I am shocked at the killing of former Tolo News anchor Yama Siawash,"
   tweeted Ross Wilson, acting U.S. ambassador in Kabul. "This attack is
   an assault on freedom of the press, one of Afghanistan's core
   democratic principles," he lamented.

   Abdullah Abdullah, who heads Afghanistan's peace and reconciliation
   process with the Taliban, also said Siawash's murder was targeted at
   freedom of expression in the country. "This is an unforgivable and
   unforgettable crime," Abdullah said in a statement.

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