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Afghan president condemns killing of civilians

Xinhua, November 9, 2015 Adjust font size:

Afghan president on Monday condemned killing of seven civilians in the country's southern province of Zabul, the Presidential Palace said in a statement issued here.

"Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, condemns in its strongest terms the beheading of civilians especially women and a child in Khak-e-Afghan district of Zabul province and considers that atrocious act as a sign of desperation and defeat of the enemies of the people of Afghanistan," the statement said.

On Saturday night, militants loyal to the so-called Islamic State (IS) group killed seven civilians who were abducted one month ago from neighboring Ghazni province.

By killing innocent civilians, the enemies of Afghanistan proved once again that they have been defeated on the battlefield by the Afghan security and defense forces, the statement quoted Ghani as saying.

"The president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan holds an extraordinary security meeting today to seek ways for tracking down and punishing the perpetrators of this atrocious crime and commiserate with the families of the victims," according to the statement.

Nearly 1,600 civilians were killed and more than 3,300 others wounded in conflicts and attacks in the first half of the year, according to UN mission figures. Endit