Former Afghan police commander Abdul Samad Achakzai was shot dead by an unknown assailant in Quetta, sources have said.
According to reports, Achakzai was killed at the Pirkani Gali in Quetta’s Easter Bypass on Sunday morning. He was shot dead near his home when he was on his way to visit some place on his motorcycle.
The Quetta police have said that the attackers were also on a motorcycle and fled after shooting Achakzai dead. The police further said that Abdul Samad Achakzai was a native of the Kandahar of Afghanistan and also a police commander in the Afghan government before the Taliban takeover.
Achakzai’s brother was safe in the attack, but a passerby was badly wounded. The Afghan police commander’s dead body and the wounded pedestrian were moved to the Quetta Civil Hospital for treatment.
The police said that the incident appears to be a hate crime directed towards the Afghan community of Quetta. Achakzai’s family members have not nominated anyone for the crime, but they have asked the authorities to launch a thorough investigation into the incident and bring the culprits to justice.
Akhtar Muhammad Badizai, a close advisor of the former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, said in a statement on his Facebook page that Achakzai served as the Deputy District Police in the Panjwai district of Kandahar. He had also served as a police commander in the Uruzgan province.
Former Afghan police commander Abdul Maroof Kumaki said that Achakzai and his fellow policemen had worked tirelessly to repel the advancing Taliban forces before the fall of Kabul. He said that Achakzai had valiantly fought for democracy in Afghanistan, and when the Taliban swept into power, he and his fellow fighters had no choice but to escape to Pakistan for safety.
The Quetta police said that Achakzai’s brother has immigration, but he did not possess one and therefore he was living in the city as an illegal immigrant.
Achakzai had recently made a statement on social media, condemning the recent attack on a school in the Afghan capital Kabul. In the post, Achakzai said that we will not forget this tragedy; we will not remain silent.