The local reporter for Kabul-based Ariana TV, was killed in a bomb blast when he was on a reporting trip with two other reporters near Lashkargah city. AIJA Helmand president Zainullah Stanekzai and a reporter of Zwandon TV survived the explosion. It was not immediately clear whether the journalists were targeted or fell prey to an ambush.

Stanikzai reportedly said: “We were on our way to the 2nd police district where fighting was underway when the vehicle we were traveling in hit a roadside bomb. One reporter was killed another wounded and the blast left an impact on me as well.”