7 killed in attack on Shia clerics

At least seven people were killed yesterday when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a rickshaw carrying two Shia clerics in western Afghanistan, an official and residents said.

The official from Herat's intelligence department told AFP the attack happened in the Kora Milli area of the city, adding seven people were killed and one wounded.

Locals said four women were among the dead and that both clerics were killed.

"They were returning home in a three-wheeler... when they were targeted by unknown gunmen with gunfire," one resident told AFP.

"The target of this shooting was probably two religious scholars who were Shias," he said.

Shias are a minority in Afghanistan and are drawn mostly from the Hazara community, a frequent target of attacks by militants from the Islamic State (IS) group, who consider them heretics.

Violence has reduced dramatically since the Taliban ended their insurgency after seizing power in August 2021, but a number of armed groups -- including the regional chapter of IS -- remain a threat.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan's Taliban administration has appointed a former spokesperson as ambassador to China, the foreign affairs ministry said yesterday, its first officially accredited envoy to any country since taking over in 2021.

Former administration spokesman Bilal Karimi arrived in China late in November to take up the role, the Taliban-run foreign ministry said in a statement.