An Afghan journalist barely survived a car bomb attack on his car this week in Kabul.

The journalist, who we will call Journo to conceal his identity for fear of reprisals against him, had been in hiding after Taliban heavies came to his house searching for him. His family and neighbours were repeatedly questioned and harassed in attempts to get them to reveal his whereabouts.

Here is the journalist’s story, told to radioinfo by a relative:

From the day when Taliban tookover Kabul, Journo has been followed by gunmen, therefore he has been unable to go out of his home for three months.He has been hiding along with his children and wife. This is because he had 20 years of journalism experience and one year worked with foreign organisations (details withheld).

In the last three months Journo shifted 5 or 6 times from one house to another, in the last home theylived in a small cold and dark room. He had to stay there only with his wife and small children because there was not enough space for them all to live all in one room, so Journo had to separate his family in to two parts. One part was Journo, his wife and their three infant children, and in the second part his two eldest sons. His children were living apart and used to call him and were crying to visit him. 

On 17th November, 2021 he wanted to bring his children to his hiding room. On the way he felt some people were following him, he called to me at 3pm and told me some unknown people are following me, I told him go back and hide. But on the way back his children called him (“father please take us home!”) so he continued his journey to bring his children back. 

There was a bloody attack on his vehicle at 3:45 pm near to his home. As the result Journo was injured very seriously and he was taken to hospital. Now he cannot walk, speak on the phone or write. 

The journalist has applied for emergency asylum but has not yet heard anything about his asylum claim. He fears that he will be killed and his family mistreated if his claim is not processed quickly, allowing he and his family to be evacuated from Kabul.

Journo’s story is one of many similar stories we are hearing from Afghanistan under the Taliban. It indicates that the Taliban’s claims that they will not take revenge on people who worked for foreign organisations may not be able to be trusted.

Journalists and other media workers in Afghanistan desperately need help to leave the country.

The moments after the car bomb attack were captured by an observer and posted to facebook.

radioinfo has independently confirmed the details of this report with two other sources.