Tributes poured in from colleagues, friends, and politicians for Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Danish Siddiqui, as they condoled his untimely demise.
In his time as a photojournalist, Siddiqui covered stories in Asia, Middle East, and Europe, such as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Rohingya refugees crisis, Hong Kong protests, Nepal earthquakes, Mass Games in North Korea, and the living conditions of asylum seekers in Switzerland.
The Indian journalist was killed on Friday, 16 July, while covering the situation in Kandahar in the last few days. According to AFP, Afghan forces clashed with Taliban fighters in Spin Boldak after an operation was launched to retake the vital border crossing with Pakistan.
Afghanistan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, I&B Minister Anurag Thakur, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and his colleagues offered their condolences.
"I am deeply saddened by the shocking reports that Reuters photojournalist Danish Siddiqui was killed while covering the Taliban atrocities in Kandaha. While I extend my heartfelt condolences to Sidiqqui’s family and also to our media family, I reiterate my government’s unwavering commitment to freedom of speech and protection of free media and journalists," said Afghanistan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in a tweet said "We have lost a photo journalist par excellence whose work underscored his commitment to humanity. (sic)"
Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Anurag Thakur, offered his condolences and said in a tweet, "Danish Siddiqui leaves behind an extraordinary body of work."
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi appealed to the Government of India, 'to facilitate bringing his mortal remains back home at the earliest'.
The Afghan Journalists Safety Committees in a tweet said that it was deeply saddened by the death of Siddiqui and called on “both sides of the conflict to protect journalists”.
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