Suspected Taliban militants behead 2 children in southern Afghanistan

USPA News - Suspected Taliban insurgents beheaded two young children on Sunday after accusing them of being spies for taking food from Afghan security forces, provincial officials said on Monday, although the group claimed it was not responsible for the barbaric killings. Javid Faisal, a spokesman for the Kandahar governor`s office, said the two boys, aged 10 and 16, were beheaded on Sunday in the Zhari District of Kandahar province.

It happened in Afghanistan`s volatile southern region that was the birthplace of the Taliban movement two decades ago. "The two boys were beheaded by Taliban at the same time after getting food from a police check point in Zhari District," Faisal said. "The Kandahar Provincial government condemns the Taliban for the beheading; we ask citizens to report suspicious people or behavior to Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF)." Local officials said the boys were accused of being spies for the Afghan government after Taliban insurgents saw them repeatedly visiting a police checkpoint to collect food that was being given to poor people. The beheaded bodies of the children were later discovered by villagers in a remote area. Taliban spokesman Qari Yousuf Ahmadi denied its fighters were responsible for the gruesome killings, emphasizing that the insurgent group condemned the murders. The militants are known to distance themselves from certain incidents in which children are involved, but it was not possible to independently verify either the government`s nor the insurgents` account.