Amidst Peace Talks With Taliban In Qatar, Two Women Judges Of Afghanistan’s Supreme Court Shot Dead In Kabul

Amidst the peace talks between Taliban and Afghan government officials in Qatar, two women judges of the Afghanistan's Supreme Court were shot dead in an early morning ambush on their car in Kabul, reports The Indian Express.

However, the Taliban have denied any responsibility for the attack.

On Sunday morning, the gunmen opened fire on the two female judges travelling to the court in their official vehicle.

“Unfortunately we have lost two women judges in today’s attack. Their driver is wounded. The vehicle was transporting the women judges to their office,” said Ahmad Fahim Qaweem, a court spokesman.

On the other hand as part of a deal with the Taliban to negotiate a possible peace agreement, the United States (US) announced withdrawal of its soldiers. The US had scaled down its military presence in Afghanistan to just 2,500 personnel which is the lowest in the last two decades.

In July 2020, the United Nations (UN)'s Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team revealed that there are as many as 6,000-6,500 Pakistani terrorists operating in Afghanistan, with most of them being affiliated to a grouping called Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

According to Afghanistan’s Spy chief Ahmad Zia Siraj, the country has experienced over 18,000 attacks in 2020 alone. Continued violence by anti-government militants has the potential to derail the peace talks and push India’s north-western neighbourhood into more instability.