With madness all around we can expect only small mercies and tiny blessings. Herat has been the scene of Indian embassy attack recently. It was considered an unlikely place due to the proximity with Iran. But then mad people follow no logic.
…….
Afghan police hunted down and killed two Taliban insurgents who cut off
the fingers of 11 elderly men who voted in the presidential election
run-off, officials said today.
All voters in Afghanistan had their fingers marked with ink after voting
to prevent them from casting more than one ballot, but the ink also
identified those who participated in the election in defiance of Taliban
threats.
….
“Insurgent commander Mullah Shir Agha and one of his officers were
killed in a police operation yesterday in Herat,” a statement from the
interior ministry said.
“The pair were accused of having cut off the ink-dyed finger of 11 voters.”
The ministry said another insurgent involved in the attacks was injured in the operation and held by police.
….
Local police confirmed the operation, but said two Taliban fighters had escaped.
“The security forces are on them. They are members of Taliban and will
pay the price for their crimes,” Herat police spokesman Abdul Rauf
Ahmadi said.
…
Jan Kubis, head of the UN mission in Afghanistan, described the mutilations as an “abhorrent” act.
“These ordinary Afghans were exercising their fundamental right to
determine the future path of their country through voting and not
through violence and intimidation,” he said.
…
One spokesman for the Taliban denied involvement in the attack.
The Taliban had vowed to target voters on Saturday, when two candidates
stood in the second-round vote to succeed President Hamid Karzai.
……
Link: http://www.outlookindia.com/news/printitem.aspx?845010
……
regards