Human Rights & Public Liberties

Human Rights & Public Liberties

Newsletter
Published on: 13 Jan, 2021

Female Supreme Court judges killed in Kabul

Published on: 18 January, 2021

Two female Afghan Supreme Court judges were shot and killed in Kabul on Sunday morning.

The two women were killed by unidentified gunmen who opened fire on their car while they were on their way to work. The women were ambushed and their driver was  injured.

The women have not yet been identified.

Ross Wilson, the US chargé d’affaires in Kabul,  condemned Sunday’s assassination in a Twitter post and called for a “prompt investigation”.

There are more than 200 women working for Afghanistan’s Supreme Court.

 

Wave of killings

The killings come amidst a wave of recent killings and surge in violence in Afghanistan in recent months.

Afghan officials have blamed the Taliban for the shooting of the judges. The spokesperson for the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahid, has denied responsibility.

The US military has accused the Taliban of being responsible for the bloodshed in recent months.

The violence occurred amidst US President Trump withdrawing troops from Afghanistan. There are now only 2500 US troops remaining in the country.

Targeted killings of this kind are also continuing in spite of peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in Doha.