Pro-government religious leader assassinated in Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan

A senior pro-government religious scholar was assassinated by unknown attackers in Afghanistan's western Herat province bordering Iran, officials confirmed on Thursday.

The Herat police command identified the slain scholar as Maulvi Muhammad Kababyani, deputy head of religious council in the country’s western zone of Afghanistan.

Abdul Ahad, a police spokesman, said the incident took place in the Enjeel district early Thursday morning when Mawlawi Kababyani was heading home from a mosque.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the assault.

A few days ago, another prominent pro-government religious leader Maulvi Sayed Saifullah Safi, who was head of the religious council in Syed Khail district, was assassinated in northern Parwan province.

A number of prominent religious figures have been killed over the past year, including Maulvi Ayaz Niazi, the widely respected prayer leader of the Wazir Mohammed Akbar Khan Mosque in Kabul's highly guarded diplomatic zone.

Since the announcement of an exit date of September 2021 for American troops by US President Joe Biden, Afghanistan has been witnessing a spike in deadly Taliban assaults across the country that has led to mounting casualties on all sides.