Taliban arrest journalists, cameramen covering anti-Pakistan rally
Afghanistan's TOLO News reported that the Taliban had stopped journalists from covering the protest and took away their cameras.
The Taliban have fired gunshots to disperse a rally on Tuesday in Kabul and arrested several Afghan journalists who were covering the demonstration, witnesses and Afghan media outlets said.
Afghanistan's TOLO News reported that the Taliban had stopped journalists from covering the protest and took away their cameras. The news agency alleged that the Taliban captured one of its photographer, Waheed Ahmadi, during the protest rally.
A TOLOnews reporter said: "My colleague, Waheed Ahmadi, who was covering today’s protest in Kabul was taken by the Taliban fighters. He along with some other journalists and cameramen were taken to unknown place."
Some journalists, including the BBC's team, were prevented from filming at the rally, BBC reported.
A former government official who asked to remain anonymous told the BBC that Taliban members were taking close-up photos of leading protesters, possibly to help identify them later.
The Taliban fighters fired shots in the air on Tuesday to disperse hundreds of people who had gathered for an anti-Pakistan rally, protesting Pakistani involvement in the affairs of Afghanistan.
Hundreds of locals, including women and children, were seen protesting, chanting slogans against Pakistan on the streets of Kabul, videos shared by local media showed, news agency AFP reported.
The protest comes a day after Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director-General Lieutenant-General Faiz Hameed met the group's co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who is likely to lead the new government in Afghanistan.
Tuesday's demonstration comes after the Taliban claimed total control over Afghanistan a day earlier, saying they had won the key battle for the Panjshir Valley, the last holdout of resistance against their rule.
NOTE: Asianet News humbly requests everyone to wear masks, sanitize, maintain social distancing and get vaccinated as soon as eligible. Together we can and will break the chain #ANCares #IndiaFightsCorona