This is not the first time that Afghanistan Times editor-in-chief Abdul Saboor Sarir has come under attack. He has received threats from different groups in the past.
This statement was originally published on afjc.af on 10 October 2016.
Unidentified gunmen assaulted the Afghanistan Times editor-in-chief, Abdul Saboor Sarir, and snatched his car, laptop and cell phones. The incident occurred in the highly fortified Afghan capital on late Sunday night, 9 October 2016.
According to the daily, the unknown men, driving a Helix pick up, stopped the editor-in-chief of the Kabul-based English newspaper at gunpoint on Sunday around 9:00 pm, and took his vehicle, laptop and cell phones after injuring him.
He came under attack in the Khwaja Bughra area of Kabul City, while on his way home from his office. The area which is in the 15th Police District is only 3.5 kilometers away from the Ministry of Interior.
Sarir sustained head injuries in the attack. Fortunately, he is in stable condition. “I was on my way home when three gunmen stopped me. They beat me. They told my brother that they would kill him if he resisted or inform the police at the moment,” Sarir said.
The police has launched an investigation into the attack. However, it is not the first time that Sarir has come under attack. He was repeatedly threatened by different groups of dire consequences. Sarir says, five months ago, unknown people tried to abduct him in the fourth police district of Kabul at gunpoint. A police vehicle then appeared on the road and the kidnappers escaped.
The Afghanistan Times stated that it is not clear whether the gunmen were carjackers or the individuals who threatened him regularly. Sarir claims he has repeatedly requested security measures from the law enforcement agencies as this year different militant groups, including the Taliban and Daesh, issued death threats against him.
The Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC) condemns in the strongest possible terms the assault of Abdul Saboor Sarir, asking the government to immediately commence an investigation in order to identify the suspects and take swift action against those responsible.
