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Ex-Taliban commander 'shot dead by colleague'
A former Taliban commander and two of his fighters were shot dead by his own bodyguard in northern Afghanistan, local officials said Wednesday.
Afghan and Western forces allied in the fight against the decade-long Taliban insurgency have suffered a series of attacks by their own Afghan colleagues, but the exact circumstances of the latest incident were unclear.
"One of Commander Zia's bodyguards killed him and and two other bodyguards last night," said Abdul Momand Omar Khail, district chief of Chahar Dara in Kunduz province.
"The killer has escaped, security forces are looking to capture the killer."
The group were all former members of the Taliban but left the insurgency last year under a government scheme offering militants money and jobs, he added.
The motive for the attack was not clear, with Khail saying it was not known if the killer had gone back to the Taliban, and personal animosity may have played a role as the commander had previously been charged with murder.
Provincial spokesman Enayatullah Baleegh confirmed the incident.
Killings of NATO service members by Afghan security personnel are known as "green-on-blue".
Afghanistan's interior ministry said the Kunduz incident involved a current Talib killing his commander and three colleagues -- a version rapidly dubbed a "black-on-black" killing by Afghan social media users, referring to the Taliban's usual dress.
Afghan and Western forces allied in the fight against the decade-long Taliban insurgency have suffered a series of attacks by their own Afghan colleagues, but the exact circumstances of the latest incident were unclear.
"One of Commander Zia's bodyguards killed him and and two other bodyguards last night," said Abdul Momand Omar Khail, district chief of Chahar Dara in Kunduz province.
"The killer has escaped, security forces are looking to capture the killer."
The group were all former members of the Taliban but left the insurgency last year under a government scheme offering militants money and jobs, he added.
The motive for the attack was not clear, with Khail saying it was not known if the killer had gone back to the Taliban, and personal animosity may have played a role as the commander had previously been charged with murder.
Provincial spokesman Enayatullah Baleegh confirmed the incident.
Killings of NATO service members by Afghan security personnel are known as "green-on-blue".
Afghanistan's interior ministry said the Kunduz incident involved a current Talib killing his commander and three colleagues -- a version rapidly dubbed a "black-on-black" killing by Afghan social media users, referring to the Taliban's usual dress.