Afghan Journalist Mistakenly Killed by U.S. Soldier

NATO has acknowledged that an Afghan journalist working for the BBC was accidentally killed by a U.S. soldier who mistook him for a suicide bomber.

In a statement released Thursday, NATO said the reporter was killed in a “case of mistaken identity” and expressed condolence to his family.

Ahmed Omaid Khpulwak, who was known as Omaid, was at a television station in Uruzgan province when it was attacked by suicide bombers in late July. More than a dozen people were killed by the insurgents. But the 25-year-old stringer was found in a bathroom -- where he had apparently taken refuge from insurgents -- with gunshot wounds. The BBC requested an official inquiry.

In its statement, NATO said that, when U.S. forces responded to the scene of the attack at the television station and an adjacent television compound, they were met with small-arms fire from insurgents, who later detonated their explosives. When a soldier located Khpulwak, the reporter appeared to make a motion suggesting he was about to detonate another suicide bomb. The soldier, who was not identified, shot the journalist, killing him.

The BBC said it would be “studying the details of the findings and await receipt of the full report.” In a statement, the broadcaster added that it was “greatly indebted” to Khpulwak and “all his colleagues who have been killed whilst doing their job.” Source