by Abdul Haleem, Jawed Omid
LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Every day from dawn to dusk an innocent child named Sanaullah has been searching for his father but the late Nematullah Zaheer, an Afghan journalist, was killed by a roadside bomb in Helmand's provincial capital Lashkar Gah on Nov. 4.
"Zaheer has left his family forever but Sanaullah, who is only three years old, is desperately looking for his father in and around his muddy house," his uncle, Abdul Halim, told Xinhua.
Zaheer, who had worked for both national and international media outlets since the collapse of the Taliban regime in late 2001, used to live in the former Taliban stronghold of the southern Helmand province.
"He (Zaheer) was killed by a roadside bomb blast on Nov. 4 while he was preparing a report about the military situation on the frontline outside the beleaguered provincial capital city of Lashkar Gah," Zaheer's brother lamented.
Zaheer is survived by his wife and four children. "No one can fill the vacuum in the family left by Zaheer's death," Halim said solemnly.
"All of Zaheer's four children, particularly his youngest, Sanaullah, have been desperately searching for their father and often ask their mother and uncle when their father will come back home," he added.
"The futile search for his father by the innocent young child is adding to the pain of the family," said Halim, adding that it was despicable to kill a journalist who is an unarmed civilian serving the country.
The insurgency-plagued Afghanistan is among the riskiest countries for journalists to work and 12 reporters have lost their lives in violence so far this year, according to the Afghan Journalists Safety Committee (AJSC), a non-governmental body supporting media outlets here.
In mid-October, an armed man gunned down Yaqub Sharafat, an Afghan journalist who had worked in Helmand's neighboring Zabul province, with the attacker remaining at large.
Similarly, a violent attack against journalists claimed the lives of two more reporters, Afghan journalist Zabihullah Tamana and an American reporter in the southern Helmand province in early June.
In addition, a suicide bombing, for which Taliban claimed responsibility, took the lives of seven staff of the private television channel Tolo in January 2016, depriving families of their loved ones including many children of their parents.
"Our utmost concern nowadays is how to comfort Zaheer's children especially the youngest who is still searching for his father in hope," a tearful Halim said.
