The attack on a senior journalist from Ghazni sparked grave concern among the Afghan media community. Voices were raised saying such attempts against media workers must stop.  

Rahmatullah Nikzad, a freelance reporter and head of a media safety union in Ghazni, was killed in an attack by unknown armed men in the province on Monday evening. The attack happened near his home, according to local officials.  

US Chargé d’Affaires Ross Wilson in a tweet said he is saddened “to hear of another targeted killing against a member of the Afghan press corps.”  

He said, “this endless cycle of violence and attempts to silence Afghanistan’s courageous reporters must stop.” 

“Our concern is that it has an impact on journalists and they cannot work as they want,” said Saifullah Maftoon, a journalist in Ghazni. 

“We would not have witnessed such attacks if the security agencies and the government increased security measures for journalists,” said Faisal Nawid, a journalist in Ghazni. 

Organizations supporting journalists said the government should make further efforts to protect the media community. 

“The Afghan government has failed to ensure the safety of journalists. The government has not done anything to prevent violence against journalists and investigate cases involving journalists,” said Mujib Khalwatgar, head of Nai, an organization supporting open media in Afghanistan. 

“So far this year, 180 cases of violence against journalists have been registered in the journalists’ safety committee and 70 of them are murder cases of journalists,” said Qasim Rahmani, a legal adviser in the journalists’ safety committee. 

Amnesty International called the attack “a horrific crime” and said, “the Afghan government must ensure thorough investigation and the perpetrators must be brought to justice through fair trials without recourse to death penalty.” 

“We call on the government to assess all these cases and punish the perpetrators,” said Zaman Sultani, a researcher at Amnesty International.  

“Anyone who commits this or is involved in it is outside of Islam,” said Sardar Zadran, a religious scholar. 

The Taliban condemned the attack on the Ghazni journalist. The Taliban said his death is a big loss for the country.  

But the Afghan government blamed the Taliban for the attack. 

“The Taliban is involved in attacking journalists and the media because they are a secret enemy of freedom of expression and they see the media as a hurdle for hiding their acts,” Dawa Khan Minapal, a presidential spokesman, said. 

Nikzad was the fifth journalist killed in the country in less than two months. Former TOLOnews presenter Yama Siawash, Radio Azadi reporter Elyas Daee, Enekaas TV's presenter in Nangarhar Malala Maiwand, and Ariana News presenter Fardin Amini all have been killed in different incidents since November 7. 

Nikzad was laid to rest in Ghazni on Tuesday. He worked for different local and international media organizations, including Reuters and Associated Press, for the last 20 years.  

His career in journalism started when he began working at Radio Ghaznawiyan in Ghazni. Journalists said Nikzad was the first journalist who traveled to areas under Taliban influence.  

He was 50 years old and is survived by two wives, two daughters and four sons.