Senior Afghan cleric assassinated in Helmand Province mosque

An Afghan cleric has been assassinated by gunmen inside a mosque in the southern province of Helmand, Press TV reports.

Molavi Shawali, the prayer leader of the Grand Mosque in the Nawa-I-Barakzayi district, came under gunfire by three armed men on Wednesday.

The assailants managed to escape after targeting the cleric who is said to have been a supporter of the Afghan government.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. The police said an investigation had been launched to track down the perpetrators of the murder.

Kabul had earlier condemned the assassination of tribal leaders and Muslim scholars in the country’s troubled south as part of a serial and targeted killing operation.

In the neighboring Kandahar Province alone, some 500 people have fallen victim to similar attacks in the past few years.

In 2001, the United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan under the pretext of eradicating Taliban forces and bringing stability to the country.

The offensive toppled the Taliban rule, but over a decade into the invasion, violence and insecurity continue to plague the war-weary country.