Thousands attend memorial for slain Afghan photographer
Posted May 1, 2018 5:35 am.
Last Updated May 1, 2018 6:41 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
KABUL – Thousands of mourners attended a memorial ceremony on Tuesday for Agence France-Presse’s chief photographer in Afghanistan, who was killed along with eight other reporters in a double suicide bombing in Kabul by the Islamic State group.
Relatives, friends and government officials all gathered to pay tribute to Shah Marai and extend condolences to his family and colleagues for their loss the day before.
Marai, 41, was the father of six children. His youngest, a daughter, was born a little over two weeks ago.
Monday marked the deadliest assault on reporters since the fall of the Taliban in 2001, according to Reporters Without Borders, also known by its French acronym RSF.
The bombings in Kabul killed 25 people and wounded at least 45.
RSF said 36 media workers have been killed in Afghanistan in attacks by the Islamic State group or the Taliban since 2016.
