A Swedish journalist was shot to death while he was talking to a translator Tuesday on a street in Kabul, according to officials and witnesses.
Nils Horner, 51, who also had British citizenship, had worked for Swedish Radio SR since 2001 as a foreign correspondent mostly in Asia and the Middle East, including Afghanistan and Baghdad.
The motive was unclear. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied responsibility for the attack, which came two months after a suicide bombing and shooting attack against a Lebanese restaurant that killed 13 foreigners and eight Afghans in the same area.
A guard at a restaurant across the street from the attack said two young men approached the journalist as he was talking to his translator at about 11 a.m. on the side of the road. The area is home to several embassies.
The guard, Mohammad Zubair, said one of the men pulled out a pistol and shot Horner in the head, causing him to collapse in a pool of blood. He said there was a single shot and the bullet then hit a nearby Mercedes Benz, which had a bullet hole.
Zubair said he and other guards called to police at a nearby checkpoint and they began an investigation.
Sayed Gul Agha Hashimi, the head of the Kabul Criminal Investigation Department, earlier said two suspects had been arrested, but then clarified that police were questioning the journalist’s driver and translator, ABC informs.
