At least a dozen missiles have been fired in Kabul, targeting the diplomatic zone and landing near the presidential palace. The attack came as President Ashraf Ghani was speaking at an Eid prayer ceremony.

Rockets landed in four different parts of Kabul on Tuesday morning, according to Tolo. The missiles hit near the diplomatic area and some reportedly landed near the presidential palace. The outlet said, citing officials, that at least 12 missiles exploded in the city, adding that locals say there might have been more than 20.

The first rocket hit somewhere “near the presidency,” the second near a NATO compound and the US Embassy in Kabul, AP reported citing a police official. Black smoke was seen rising from the buildings as military helicopters were flying near the Eidgah Mosque in Reka Khana district, where clashes are reportedly ongoing.

Security forces killed two “insurgents” in the aftermath of the attack, Tolo said. Two people were reportedly wounded.
Blasts were heard in the background as President Ghani was delivering his Eid message. The Afghan leader did not stop his speech, saying that the rocket attack will not “keep the Afghans down.”

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack so far, but it comes just two days after Ghani declared a ceasefire with the Taliban ahead of Eid celebrations. However, the group rejected the offer on Monday, when it was supposed to have taken effect, as militants ambushed three buses and kidnapped the passengers.

Afghan security forces reportedly freed nearly 160 kidnapped people on Tuesday, but the group is still holding at least 20 military personnel hostage.

By Joel Simon/CPJ Executive Director and Alexandra Ellerbeck/Senior US Research Associate,

For decades if not longer, repressive leaders around the world have defended restrictions on freedom of the press by citing examples of Western governments failing to live by their own professed standards.

So when, in late-2016, Canadian photojournalist Ed Ou was unable to report from the Dakota Access Pipeline protests because he had been barred from entering the United States, the Turkish government issued a press release describing it as yet another example that in countries that frequently criticize Turkey for its treatment of the press, “journalism is not as rose-tinted as it may seem.” Ou, who one year earlier had been blocked by Turkey from entering that country, said he “didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.”

Although the Ou incident took place during the waning days of the Obama Administration, throughout the first 100 days of the presidency of Donald J. Trump — a man who loves to disparage, insult, and rail against the media — the trend has continued. President Trump’s oft-tweeted “fake news” epithet, for example, has already been adopted by repressive governments such as China, Syria, and Russia. And when Trump attacked a correspondent during a February press conference, he was cheered by Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the world’s worst jailer of journalists, according to CPJ’s annual global imprisoned census.

Of course, all U.S. presidents complain about how they’re treated in the press. Some have gone further: During Obama’s first term, the Department of Justice used the Espionage Act to conduct an unprecedented number of leak investigations, several of which ensnared journalists. Generally, however, U.S. presidents have criticized the media while also acknowledging the essential role of a free press in American democracy, and while pledging to uphold the First Amendment.

Contact:

Carlos Lauria
Americas Senior Program Coordinator
Tel. +1.212.300.9009
Email: clauria@cpj.org

Alexandra Ellerbeck
Senior US and Americas Researcher
Tel. +1.212.300.9015
Email: aellerbeck@cpj.org

Massive missile attack launched near presidential palace in Kabul

With press freedom under attack worldwide, US is setting wrong example