AP photographer witnessed the murder of two women in Afganistan (more)

They were allegedly prostitutes who had served a Western clientele:

AP photographer Rahmatullah Naikzad was a witness to a Taliban murder. The two women were alleged to have been prostitutes who served Western clientèle.

Two unidentified Afghan Women chat with each other a few minutes before they were executed by Taliban in Ghazni province, Afghanistan, on late Saturday, July 12, 2008.
(AP Photo/Rahmatullah Naikzad)
[original here]

Local people watch two Afghan women shot and killed by Taliban in Ghazni province, Afghanistan, on Sunday, July 13, 2008.
(AP Photo/Rahmatullah Naikzad)
(original here)

This page from the AP seems to suggest that Rahmatullah Naikzad also took a snuff video of the two women being murdered.

We would remind the AP that the act of the Taliban inviting a reporter to the murder means they wanted this news out there. The AP was clearly being used as a propaganda outlet for the Taliban.

Phyllis Chesler on the photos:

The photo arrests my gaze. It instantly haunts me. It shows two Afghan women chatting while sitting on their heels, close to the ground. They are both wearing iridescent light blue burqas. One seems to be clutching a shopping bag. They are about to be shot to death by Taliban fighters who accused them of running a prostitution ring that catered to American soldiers. For good measure, the Taliban also accused them of working for the local governor. According to the BBC here:

“A spokesman for the Ghazni governor said the dead women were “innocent local people” and the US has also dismissed the allegations. US military spokesman 1st Lt. Nathan Perry said he had never heard of “anything close to that nature.” Ghazni officials told Agence France Presse that the women, killed late on Saturday, had no connection with the government.”

In the photos they are wearing a burqa so we can’t see their faces: at least they have some privacy…

More: video confirmed. Images of their deaths (and shouts…) are gruesome.

Technorati Tags: Taliban, Ghazni, Aghanistan, Rahmatullah+Naikzad, Islamism, violence+against+women