TALIBAN refutes accusation of killing Danish Siddique

DELHI-based Press Club of India has condemned the dastardly killing of eminent Indian photojournalist Danish Siddique,41, while on an assignment to cover the ongoing armed conflict between the Taliban and the Afghan Government. “We salute the brave photojournalist deputed by Reuters, an international news outlet, and convey our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family”,  PCI said, as the dreadful Taliban has denied the allegation that it has killed the young and the Pulitzer winning photojournalist. Expressing regret over his tragic death, Taliban Spokesperson Zabiullah Mujtahid “we are not aware during whose firing the journalist was killed” adding “journalists should inform them when entering war zone so that we can take precautionary measure to save them”. His body has been handed over to the Red Cross by the Taliban to the Afghan government, sources said. Expressing condolences to Siddiqui’s family, Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani said the journalist was killed while covering the Taliban atrocities in Kandahar on Friday, July 16. The Indian embassy in Kabul is in touch to dispatch his mortal remains to his kin. Incidentally, he was an alumnus of the Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi and started his career as a TV reporter. He was working with Reuters since 2010. He was part of the Reuters photography team that won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography for documenting the Rohingya refugee crisis. He was based in Mumbai. The U.S. government has condemned the killing.  Department of State Principal Deputy Spokesperson Jalina Porter called his killing  “… A tremendous loss…”. Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said that India strongly condemns the killing of Danish Siddiqui in Afghanistan. He was speaking at an event of the United Nations Security Council. India’s Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur also paid condolence.