More Christians killed in Northern Nigerian jihad last year
than in the rest of the world combined
www.jihadwatch.org
than in the rest of the world combined
www.jihadwatch.org
Such a nice friendly religion.
I'm sure the British are so happy to have these guys as neighbors.
[h=1]Blood on his hands, hatred in his eyes: 2.30pm on a suburban high street, Islamic fanatics wielding meat cleavers butcher a British soldier, taking their war on the West to a new level of horror[/h]
PUBLISHED: 09:49 EST, 22 May 2013 | UPDATED: 19:39 EST, 22 May 2013
Clutching a bloodied meat cleaver after executing a soldier on a crowded street, he delivers a chilling message of hate.
‘You people will never be safe,’ he declares in a clear south London accent. ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.’
In broad daylight, he and an accomplice had just repeatedly stabbed and tried to behead an off-duty soldier in front of dozens of passers-by.
Scroll down for videos // Did you witness the killing and take pictures or video? Or do you know the men involved? Email us: mailonlinepictures@dailymail.co.uk
Shocking: This exclusive still from a video obtained by ITV News shows a man with bloodied hands and carrying knives speaking to a camera in Woolwich, south-east London
Statement: ITV News obtained footage of a man with bloodied hands and knives speaking to a camera
Speaking: In broad daylight, he and an accomplice had just repeatedly stabbed an off-duty soldier
Throughout the frenzied attack they shouted ‘Allah Akbar’ – Arabic for ‘God is great’ – then demanded horrified witnesses film them as they ranted over the crumpled body.
The two black men in their 20s, waited calmly for armed police to arrive before charging at officers brandishing a rusty revolver, knives and meat cleavers.
I'm sure the British are so happy to have these guys as neighbors.
[h=1]Blood on his hands, hatred in his eyes: 2.30pm on a suburban high street, Islamic fanatics wielding meat cleavers butcher a British soldier, taking their war on the West to a new level of horror[/h]
- Two men repeatedly stab and try to behead off-duty soldier in SE London
- During attack they shouted 'Allah Akbar' and told witnesses to film them
- Charged at police officers with rusty revolver, knives and meat cleavers
- Killing took place 200 yards from barracks and close to primary school
- Both men placed under arrest after being treated for gunshot wounds
- PM: Killing is 'sickening' and Britain will 'never buckle' in face of terror
PUBLISHED: 09:49 EST, 22 May 2013 | UPDATED: 19:39 EST, 22 May 2013
Clutching a bloodied meat cleaver after executing a soldier on a crowded street, he delivers a chilling message of hate.
‘You people will never be safe,’ he declares in a clear south London accent. ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.’
In broad daylight, he and an accomplice had just repeatedly stabbed and tried to behead an off-duty soldier in front of dozens of passers-by.
Scroll down for videos // Did you witness the killing and take pictures or video? Or do you know the men involved? Email us: mailonlinepictures@dailymail.co.uk
Shocking: This exclusive still from a video obtained by ITV News shows a man with bloodied hands and carrying knives speaking to a camera in Woolwich, south-east London
Statement: ITV News obtained footage of a man with bloodied hands and knives speaking to a camera
Throughout the frenzied attack they shouted ‘Allah Akbar’ – Arabic for ‘God is great’ – then demanded horrified witnesses film them as they ranted over the crumpled body.
The two black men in their 20s, waited calmly for armed police to arrive before charging at officers brandishing a rusty revolver, knives and meat cleavers.
"During attack they shouted 'Allah Akbar' and told witnesses to film them"
WHAT?? I'll say this right here - I would have tackled that MFer. I am not prone to violence.
I value my life. And I'm pretty sure there's nothing after this existence.
But if this is how I'm gonna go than so be it.
And had I froze? I'd realize what a Pussy I was and kill myself later ....... Film Them? WTF???
WHAT?? I'll say this right here - I would have tackled that MFer. I am not prone to violence.
I value my life. And I'm pretty sure there's nothing after this existence.
But if this is how I'm gonna go than so be it.
And had I froze? I'd realize what a Pussy I was and kill myself later ....... Film Them? WTF???
[ PC correct douches ]
[h=1]Network Evening Shows Don’t Name Islam in London Terror Attack[/h]
What does a murderous jihadist terrorist have to do to get some recognition for his cause? You hack a British soldier to death in broad daylight on a London street while shouting “Allahu akbar” and then “swear by the almighty Allah” that you’ll never stop fighting, and the U.S. broadcast networks still can’t bring themselves to utter a word about Islam.
True, the ABC CBS and NBC evening broadcasts called the attack “terrorism,” but for all the information they gave viewers, the attackers might have been Basque separatists or animal rights zealots.
On “Nightly News” NBC anchor Brian Williams said the attackers allowed “people to take video while they vent their message about religion and politics.” Correspondent Michelle Kosinski said one of the attackers “made a long political statement, weapons still in his blood-covered hands.”
CBS “Evening News with Scott Pelley” went a bit further, as reporter Charlie D’Agata mentioned that “Witnesses said that the men shouted ‘god is great’ in Arabic during the attacks.” Hmmm. Presbyterians maybe?
Over at ABC, on “World News with Diane Sawyer,” reporter Lama Hasan would only say British authorities were trying to find out including “whether or not one of [the attackers] is of African origin with ties to terrorist groups.” Of the one attacker’s video rant, Dian Sawyer said, “officials in the United States and the United Kingdom are studying the meaning of this tape.” Yes, it’s a real head-scratcher.
By contrast, the U.K. media seems to be calling the attacks what they are. The BBC (no right-wing media shop) reported that one of the attackers told a witness, “I killed him because he kills Muslims over there and I am fed up that people kill Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan.” The BBC also said that “The Muslim Council of Britain said the murder was ‘a truly barbaric act that has no basis in Islam and we condemn this unreservedly,’” and noted that “At least two plots by Islamist extremists to kill soldiers in the UK have been foiled in recent years.”
This morning, the networks did identify radical Islam as the attackers' motivation, but their initial reluctance in the face of obvious evidence fits a pattern, as when they wouldn't call Hamas terrorists while Hamas was making terrorist attacks on Israel.
[h=1]Network Evening Shows Don’t Name Islam in London Terror Attack[/h]
| By Matthew Philbin | May 23, 2013 | 10:08 110 89 Reddit0 21 | A A |
What does a murderous jihadist terrorist have to do to get some recognition for his cause? You hack a British soldier to death in broad daylight on a London street while shouting “Allahu akbar” and then “swear by the almighty Allah” that you’ll never stop fighting, and the U.S. broadcast networks still can’t bring themselves to utter a word about Islam.
True, the ABC CBS and NBC evening broadcasts called the attack “terrorism,” but for all the information they gave viewers, the attackers might have been Basque separatists or animal rights zealots.
On “Nightly News” NBC anchor Brian Williams said the attackers allowed “people to take video while they vent their message about religion and politics.” Correspondent Michelle Kosinski said one of the attackers “made a long political statement, weapons still in his blood-covered hands.”
CBS “Evening News with Scott Pelley” went a bit further, as reporter Charlie D’Agata mentioned that “Witnesses said that the men shouted ‘god is great’ in Arabic during the attacks.” Hmmm. Presbyterians maybe?
Over at ABC, on “World News with Diane Sawyer,” reporter Lama Hasan would only say British authorities were trying to find out including “whether or not one of [the attackers] is of African origin with ties to terrorist groups.” Of the one attacker’s video rant, Dian Sawyer said, “officials in the United States and the United Kingdom are studying the meaning of this tape.” Yes, it’s a real head-scratcher.
By contrast, the U.K. media seems to be calling the attacks what they are. The BBC (no right-wing media shop) reported that one of the attackers told a witness, “I killed him because he kills Muslims over there and I am fed up that people kill Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan.” The BBC also said that “The Muslim Council of Britain said the murder was ‘a truly barbaric act that has no basis in Islam and we condemn this unreservedly,’” and noted that “At least two plots by Islamist extremists to kill soldiers in the UK have been foiled in recent years.”
This morning, the networks did identify radical Islam as the attackers' motivation, but their initial reluctance in the face of obvious evidence fits a pattern, as when they wouldn't call Hamas terrorists while Hamas was making terrorist attacks on Israel.
Another day, another terrorist attack by a Muslim.
Such nice friendly folks.
[h=1]Another Soldier Attacked: Man Wearing ‘Arab-Style’ Garment Reportedly Stabs French Soldier in Neck[/h] May. 25, 2013 2:01pm Jason Howerton
A bearded attacker wearing an “Arab-style” garment stabbed a French soldier in the neck as he was patrolling a business area of western Paris on Saturday, according to reports. The unidentified man, believed to be of North African origin, quickly fled the scene.
A manhunt is currently underway.
Police officers stand near the cordoned off spot where a French soldier was stabbed in the throat in the busy commercial district of La Defense, outside Paris, Saturday May 25, 2013, and France’s president said authorities are investigating any possible links with the recent slaying of a British soldier. (Credit: AP)
“The soldier, patrolling as part of France’s Vigipirate anti-terrorist surveillance plan, was injured in the stabbing around 1800 p.m. but would survive, the source said,” Reuters reports.
It was the French daily Le Parisien that first reported police as saying the suspected attacker was a bearded man of North African origin, about 30-years-old and was wearing an Arab-style garment under his jacket.
Police officers stand near the cordoned off spot where a French soldier was stabbed in the throat in the busy commercial district of La Defense, outside Paris, Saturday May 25, 2013, and France’s president said authorities are investigating any possible links with the recent slaying of a British soldier. (Credit: AP)
The latest attack comes just days after two men killed soldier Lee Rigby by hacking his body with knives and a meat cleaver in front of dozens of passersby on Wednesday in the southeast London district of Woolwich. The horrific scene was recorded on witnesses’ cellphones, and a video has emerged showing one of the two suspects making political statements and warning of more violence as the soldier lay on the ground.
Such nice friendly folks.
[h=1]Another Soldier Attacked: Man Wearing ‘Arab-Style’ Garment Reportedly Stabs French Soldier in Neck[/h] May. 25, 2013 2:01pm Jason Howerton
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A bearded attacker wearing an “Arab-style” garment stabbed a French soldier in the neck as he was patrolling a business area of western Paris on Saturday, according to reports. The unidentified man, believed to be of North African origin, quickly fled the scene.
A manhunt is currently underway.
“The soldier, patrolling as part of France’s Vigipirate anti-terrorist surveillance plan, was injured in the stabbing around 1800 p.m. but would survive, the source said,” Reuters reports.
It was the French daily Le Parisien that first reported police as saying the suspected attacker was a bearded man of North African origin, about 30-years-old and was wearing an Arab-style garment under his jacket.
The latest attack comes just days after two men killed soldier Lee Rigby by hacking his body with knives and a meat cleaver in front of dozens of passersby on Wednesday in the southeast London district of Woolwich. The horrific scene was recorded on witnesses’ cellphones, and a video has emerged showing one of the two suspects making political statements and warning of more violence as the soldier lay on the ground.
1.5 billion people. That's roughly 1 in 4 people on this earth are Muslims. "Such nice friendly religion" and "such friendly people" quips show the level of mindset of the thread prognosticator. Religion in itself is a mindfuck, a mental prison for the weak and desperate and Christians should know the difference between faith and religion but alas many dont, as we can see. Because some people take a vile religion and use it to justify their sickening actions due to a weak and/or sick mind doesnt automatically make all said believers evil as the prognosticator would otherwise have you believe. All religious texts thousands of years old are barbaric and cruel and it only takes finding the barbaric enough or cruel enough minded people to take advantage of this. Most of us, Christian and Muslims included, lead relativity peaceful moral lives. The problem is many of the Muslims are uneducated period. There is no difference in religions, both religions are filled with good and bad passages, bloodthirsty ways and uplifting ways to somehow lump 1.5 billion people as people on equal footing of this animal is a person that is afraid of what they do not know and what they do not understand. Gays, other religions, teachers from public schools, Liberals etc etc. This type of ignorance only perpetuates with the more fearful he becomes.
Set me off? I wrote that last night after returning from a night of celebration watching Bayern Munich win Champions League believe me, not one word I typed was typed out of anger or any other emotion, just shooting facts. You generalize and marginalize groups of people you don't understand. Re-read the thread. 1.5 billion people and how many are terrorists? Like I said the problem is education this they are trapped by religion.BTW you wouldn't have a concealed weapon in England, so the only blowing of heads offs that you would have done wouldn't be with a gun, just sayin
[h=5]Sharia law allows the prosecution of rape victims for adultery. That means after a Muslim man rapes a woman, which is her fault for tempting him... he gets to stone her to death.
[/h]
This must be part of that Afghanistan success story Obama was talking about today.
[URL="http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/afghan-rally.jpg"]
Afghans chant slogans during a demonstration in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, May, 22, 2013. More than 200 male students protested in front of Kabul University on Wednesday against a decree, which includes a ban on child marriage and forced marriage, making domestic violence a crime and saying that rape victims cannot be prosecuted for adultery.(AP/Ahmad Jamshid)
[/URL]
[/h]
This must be part of that Afghanistan success story Obama was talking about today.[URL="http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/afghan-rally.jpg"]
Afghans chant slogans during a demonstration in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, May, 22, 2013. More than 200 male students protested in front of Kabul University on Wednesday against a decree, which includes a ban on child marriage and forced marriage, making domestic violence a crime and saying that rape victims cannot be prosecuted for adultery.(AP/Ahmad Jamshid)
[/URL]
A staggering 100,000 Christians are killed annually because of their faith, according to the Vatican -- and several human rights groups claim such anti-Christian violence is on the rise in countries like Pakistan, Nigeria and Egypt.
"Credible research has reached the shocking conclusion that an estimate of more than 100,000 Christians are violently killed because of some relation to their faith every year," Vatican spokesman Monsieur Silvano Maria Tomassi said Tuesday in a radio address to the United Nations Human Rights Council.
"Other Christians and other believers are subjected to forced displacement, to the destruction of their places of worship, to rape and to the abduction of their leaders, as it recently happened in the case of Bishops Yohanna Ibrahim and Boulos Yaziji, in Aleppo [Syria]," Tomassi said.
While several human rights groups could not comment specifically on the Vatican's number, organizations, like Persecution.Org, said the persecutions of Christians have been on the rise in places like Africa and the Middle East over the last decade.
"Two-hundred million Christians currently live under persecution. It’s absolutely on the rise," Jeff King, the group's president, told FoxNews.com.
"It’s easing in the old Communist world and it's rising in the Islamic world," King said, noting in particular countries like Egypt, Pakistan and Nigeria. King said that the first major killing spree in recent years happened between 1998 and 2003, when he claims 10,000 Christians were murdered in Indonesia alone during those years.
Last March, a Nigerian Christian leader was killed when suspected Muslim militants burst into his home and shot him. Two members of Islamic militant group Boko Haram shot Faye Pama Mysa, a Pentecostal pastor and secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria, in his home Wednesday, according to multiple reports. The killing happened just after President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency because of ongoing attacks in Africa's most populous nation.
King spoke of another example in which young Christian girls were forced into sex slavery in Bangladesh. More than 140 children were rescued from Islamic training centers over the last year -- with the majority of girls being targeted because of their religion, according to King.
John Eibner, CEO of Christian Solidarity International, has raised grave concerns over what he calls "religious cleansing" in Syria.
"Religious minorities are under constant threat in Syria," Eibner told FoxNews.com. "If things continue as they have been for the past two years in Syria, with an increase in religious cleansing, it's reasonable to think that there will be no more Christian communities or other religious minorities in the near future."
"Anti-Christian violence is on the increase throughout the world, especially throughout North Africa and the Middle East," he added. "It's hard for me to say with precision what the numbers are, but without doubt anti-Christian violence is on the increase."
Dinah Pokempner, general counsel for Human Rights Watch, was not able to independently verify the Vatican's figure, but said, "I think there’s little doubt that every week, every day, someone in the world is being persecuted – even to the point of losing their life – based on their religion."
"Persecution is a daily event on the basis of religion," Pokempner said. "This persecution affects Christians just as it does Muslims, Jews, Bahá'ís and people of other faiths."
A spokesman with the Vatican could not be immediately reached for comment.
Jane Zimmerman, the U.S. State Department's Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, said in a statement that: "While I’m unfamiliar with the methodology that was used to reach that number, we have certainly followed numerous cases in recent years in which Christians and others of many faiths have been attacked or killed on account of their religious beliefs."
"Whatever the numbers, no one should die for professing or practicing their faith, whatever that faith is," Zimmerman told FoxNews.com. "The United States firmly supports the freedom to profess and practice one’s faith, to believe or not to believe, and to change one’s beliefs. As Secretary Kerry said on May 20, religious freedom 'is a birthright of every human being.'"
"Credible research has reached the shocking conclusion that an estimate of more than 100,000 Christians are violently killed because of some relation to their faith every year," Vatican spokesman Monsieur Silvano Maria Tomassi said Tuesday in a radio address to the United Nations Human Rights Council.
"Other Christians and other believers are subjected to forced displacement, to the destruction of their places of worship, to rape and to the abduction of their leaders, as it recently happened in the case of Bishops Yohanna Ibrahim and Boulos Yaziji, in Aleppo [Syria]," Tomassi said.
While several human rights groups could not comment specifically on the Vatican's number, organizations, like Persecution.Org, said the persecutions of Christians have been on the rise in places like Africa and the Middle East over the last decade.
"Two-hundred million Christians currently live under persecution. It’s absolutely on the rise," Jeff King, the group's president, told FoxNews.com.
"It’s easing in the old Communist world and it's rising in the Islamic world," King said, noting in particular countries like Egypt, Pakistan and Nigeria. King said that the first major killing spree in recent years happened between 1998 and 2003, when he claims 10,000 Christians were murdered in Indonesia alone during those years.
Last March, a Nigerian Christian leader was killed when suspected Muslim militants burst into his home and shot him. Two members of Islamic militant group Boko Haram shot Faye Pama Mysa, a Pentecostal pastor and secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria, in his home Wednesday, according to multiple reports. The killing happened just after President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency because of ongoing attacks in Africa's most populous nation.
King spoke of another example in which young Christian girls were forced into sex slavery in Bangladesh. More than 140 children were rescued from Islamic training centers over the last year -- with the majority of girls being targeted because of their religion, according to King.
"Two-hundred million Christians currently live under persecution. It’s absolutely on the rise."
- Jeff King, president of Persecution.OrgJohn Eibner, CEO of Christian Solidarity International, has raised grave concerns over what he calls "religious cleansing" in Syria.
"Religious minorities are under constant threat in Syria," Eibner told FoxNews.com. "If things continue as they have been for the past two years in Syria, with an increase in religious cleansing, it's reasonable to think that there will be no more Christian communities or other religious minorities in the near future."
"Anti-Christian violence is on the increase throughout the world, especially throughout North Africa and the Middle East," he added. "It's hard for me to say with precision what the numbers are, but without doubt anti-Christian violence is on the increase."
Dinah Pokempner, general counsel for Human Rights Watch, was not able to independently verify the Vatican's figure, but said, "I think there’s little doubt that every week, every day, someone in the world is being persecuted – even to the point of losing their life – based on their religion."
"Persecution is a daily event on the basis of religion," Pokempner said. "This persecution affects Christians just as it does Muslims, Jews, Bahá'ís and people of other faiths."
A spokesman with the Vatican could not be immediately reached for comment.
Jane Zimmerman, the U.S. State Department's Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, said in a statement that: "While I’m unfamiliar with the methodology that was used to reach that number, we have certainly followed numerous cases in recent years in which Christians and others of many faiths have been attacked or killed on account of their religious beliefs."
"Whatever the numbers, no one should die for professing or practicing their faith, whatever that faith is," Zimmerman told FoxNews.com. "The United States firmly supports the freedom to profess and practice one’s faith, to believe or not to believe, and to change one’s beliefs. As Secretary Kerry said on May 20, religious freedom 'is a birthright of every human being.'"
[h=1]Tony Blair: Woolwich attack shows there is a problem 'within Islam'[/h] [h=2]Tony Blair has warned that there is a problem "within Islam" as he described the ideology behind incidents like the Woolwich terror attack as "profound and dangerous".[/h]
Mr Blair said "the seeds of future fanaticism and terror" were being sown and that children in the UK and abroad must be educated about the place of religion in society Photo: REX
By Peter Dominiczak, Political Correspondent
10:12AM BST 02 Jun 2013
Mr Blair, the former prime minister, used a column in the Mail on Sunday to call on the Government to “be honest” and admit that there is a widespread problem with the religion.
In a major intervention following the murder of soldier Lee Rigby, Mr Blair said "the seeds of future fanaticism and terror" were being sown and that children in the UK and abroad must be educated about the place of religion in society.
Mr Blair said: "There is not a problem with Muslims in general. Most in Britain will be horrified at Lee Rigby's murder.
"But there is a problem within Islam - from the adherents of an ideology that is a strain within Islam. And we have to put it on the table and be honest about it."
He said "at the extreme end of the spectrum are terrorists" but "by and large we don't admit it".
Mr Blair added: “The seeds of future fanaticism and terror, possibly even major conflict, are being sown. We have to help sow seeds of reconciliation and peace. But clearing the ground for peace is not always peaceful."
The former prime minister is the envoy to the Middle East on behalf of the Quartet - the UN, the US, the EU and Russia - charged with advancing reconciliation in the region.
Since taking up the position when he left Downing Street in 2007 he has failed to have any impact on the relationship between the Israelis and Palestinians, his critics’ claim, with one Palestinian official describing his role as “useless, useless, useless".
In his latest comments Mr Blair said "we should never forget" that the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan were long and hard because "we allowed failed states to come into being".
He also warned that achieving security in troubled nations was not enough to tackle the problem of extremism.
Mr Blair said: "We resisted revolutionary communism by being resolute on security; but we defeated it by a better idea: Freedom.
"We can do the same with this. The better idea is a modern view of religion and its place in society and politics. There has to be respect and equality between people of different faiths. Religion must have a voice in the political system but not govern it.
"We have to start with how to educate children about faith, here and abroad," he said.
Mr Blair added: "Now, more than ever, we have to be strong and we have to be strategic."
By Peter Dominiczak, Political Correspondent
10:12AM BST 02 Jun 2013
Mr Blair, the former prime minister, used a column in the Mail on Sunday to call on the Government to “be honest” and admit that there is a widespread problem with the religion.
In a major intervention following the murder of soldier Lee Rigby, Mr Blair said "the seeds of future fanaticism and terror" were being sown and that children in the UK and abroad must be educated about the place of religion in society.
Mr Blair said: "There is not a problem with Muslims in general. Most in Britain will be horrified at Lee Rigby's murder.
"But there is a problem within Islam - from the adherents of an ideology that is a strain within Islam. And we have to put it on the table and be honest about it."
He said "at the extreme end of the spectrum are terrorists" but "by and large we don't admit it".
Mr Blair added: “The seeds of future fanaticism and terror, possibly even major conflict, are being sown. We have to help sow seeds of reconciliation and peace. But clearing the ground for peace is not always peaceful."
The former prime minister is the envoy to the Middle East on behalf of the Quartet - the UN, the US, the EU and Russia - charged with advancing reconciliation in the region.
Since taking up the position when he left Downing Street in 2007 he has failed to have any impact on the relationship between the Israelis and Palestinians, his critics’ claim, with one Palestinian official describing his role as “useless, useless, useless".
In his latest comments Mr Blair said "we should never forget" that the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan were long and hard because "we allowed failed states to come into being".
He also warned that achieving security in troubled nations was not enough to tackle the problem of extremism.
Mr Blair said: "We resisted revolutionary communism by being resolute on security; but we defeated it by a better idea: Freedom.
"We can do the same with this. The better idea is a modern view of religion and its place in society and politics. There has to be respect and equality between people of different faiths. Religion must have a voice in the political system but not govern it.
"We have to start with how to educate children about faith, here and abroad," he said.
Mr Blair added: "Now, more than ever, we have to be strong and we have to be strategic."
[h=1]Taliban beheads two boys in southern Afghanistan[/h]
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan | Mon Jun 10, 2013 11:30am EDT
(Reuters) - Taliban fighters beheaded two boys aged 10 and 16 as a warning to villagers not to cooperate with the Afghan government, local officials said.
The boys, named Khan and Hameedullah, had travelled to Afghan army and police checkpoints near their home in the southern province of Kandahar, scrounging for leftover food to bring to their families, the officials said.
"The boys were on their way back ... when they were stopped by Taliban insurgents who beheaded them," the chief of Zhari district, Jamal Agha, told Reuters. "Both of them were innocent children and had nothing to do with government or foreigners."
The militants have beheaded dozens of people in the last two years, accusing them of aiding the government and its foreign backers led by the United States.
A Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, said the group was not involved in the boys' killings.
The Kandahar governor's spokesman, Javid Faisal, said the incident occurred on Sunday. Several hours later their bodies and severed heads were left in their village, he said.
Kandahar is the birthplace of the Taliban and one of Afghanistan's most restive provinces.
In July last year in the same district, a 16-year-old boy accused by the Taliban of spying for the government was beheaded and skinned. The next month, a girl aged six and a boy of 12 were kidnapped and beheaded in separate incidents in Kandahar and the east of the country.
Such incidents highlight the difficulty that Taliban leaders have in enforcing discipline across an estimated 20,000 fighters spread from Afghanistan to Pakistan.
The leadership is trying to improve the group's image in case it wants to push forward tentative reconciliation steps and perhaps even enter mainstream politics. But some militant units have proved hard to control, roaming the countryside and killing or maiming those they deem immoral.
The beheading occurred the day before seven Taliban insurgents including suicide bombers attacked country's international airport in the capital, Kabul.
Also on Monday, six insurgents with suicide vests and heavy guns attacked a government compound in the provincial center of Zabul, wounding at least 18 people.
Concerns are mounting over how the 352,000-strong Afghan security forces will cope with an intensifying Taliban insurgency once most foreign troops leave by the end of next year.
(Reporting by Ismail Sameem and Sarwar Amani, writing by Mirwais Harooni, editing by Dylan Welch and Mark Trevelyan)
- inShare21
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan | Mon Jun 10, 2013 11:30am EDT
(Reuters) - Taliban fighters beheaded two boys aged 10 and 16 as a warning to villagers not to cooperate with the Afghan government, local officials said.
The boys, named Khan and Hameedullah, had travelled to Afghan army and police checkpoints near their home in the southern province of Kandahar, scrounging for leftover food to bring to their families, the officials said.
"The boys were on their way back ... when they were stopped by Taliban insurgents who beheaded them," the chief of Zhari district, Jamal Agha, told Reuters. "Both of them were innocent children and had nothing to do with government or foreigners."
The militants have beheaded dozens of people in the last two years, accusing them of aiding the government and its foreign backers led by the United States.
A Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, said the group was not involved in the boys' killings.
The Kandahar governor's spokesman, Javid Faisal, said the incident occurred on Sunday. Several hours later their bodies and severed heads were left in their village, he said.
Kandahar is the birthplace of the Taliban and one of Afghanistan's most restive provinces.
In July last year in the same district, a 16-year-old boy accused by the Taliban of spying for the government was beheaded and skinned. The next month, a girl aged six and a boy of 12 were kidnapped and beheaded in separate incidents in Kandahar and the east of the country.
Such incidents highlight the difficulty that Taliban leaders have in enforcing discipline across an estimated 20,000 fighters spread from Afghanistan to Pakistan.
The leadership is trying to improve the group's image in case it wants to push forward tentative reconciliation steps and perhaps even enter mainstream politics. But some militant units have proved hard to control, roaming the countryside and killing or maiming those they deem immoral.
The beheading occurred the day before seven Taliban insurgents including suicide bombers attacked country's international airport in the capital, Kabul.
Also on Monday, six insurgents with suicide vests and heavy guns attacked a government compound in the provincial center of Zabul, wounding at least 18 people.
Concerns are mounting over how the 352,000-strong Afghan security forces will cope with an intensifying Taliban insurgency once most foreign troops leave by the end of next year.
(Reporting by Ismail Sameem and Sarwar Amani, writing by Mirwais Harooni, editing by Dylan Welch and Mark Trevelyan)
