Detained by US, shot dead in Kandahar
AN AFGHAN reporter who worked as a fixer for western media and had previously been detained by the US military was shot dead in Kandahar on March 10. Jawed Ahmad provided translation and transport mainly for Canadian journalists and conducted interviews in places too risky for foreign reporters.
In 2007 he was arrested by the US military on suspicion of being an “enemy combatant” because of his contacts with insurgents. He was held at the notorious Bagram detention centre near Kabul for 11 months before being freed last September.
Jawed Ahmad said he was interrogated repeatedly and tortured in custody. He accused the US military of depriving him of sleep, beating him and putting him in a cell with “mentally sick” prisoners who had broken two of his ribs.
US officials rejected the charges of mistreatment, but there has been no independent investigation of his claims. His case was strongly supported by human rights groups.
On March 10 he was driving in Kandahar when he was shot dead from a vehicle that pulled up alongside his car.