Relatives of a provincial council deputy who was gunned down recently in eastern Afghanistan say they have stoned one of the accused killers to death. A second suspect in the same shooting incident was reportedly killed soon after the February 7 slaying of Qazi Khan Malik Baba, a member of the Nangarhar Province Council. The stoning appears to be the first such execution in Afghanistan since the overthrow of the fundamentalist Taliban regime in 2001. Afghan officials told RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan that they are investigating the incident.
The suspect was apparently stoned to death in the Dara-e Noor district after his capture by Malik Baba's relatives.