The independent Afghan media group Afghanistan Journalists Centre (AFJC) on Wednesday expressed grave concern over the recent killing of journalists in the country and urged an end to the violence.

AFJC said in a statement that not less than 11 journalists and media workers had been killed in Afghanistan since a peace deal was signed between the U.S. and the Taliban outfit in February 2020.

It said that most of the victims were targeted while working.

“In the latest attack on journalists, three female employees of a local TV channel were shot dead and one female media worker was wounded by gunmen in Jalalabad city, capital of Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province on March 2.

“Militants from the Islamic State (IS) group has reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack.

“In January, one journalist was shot dead in the western Ghor province and three of his family members were killed in February,’’ it said.

On Monday, Afghan Journalists Safety Committee (AJSC), another independent Afghan media group, reported that the number of working woman journalists and media workers had reduced by 18 per cent to 1,377.

It said that this reduction occurred in the past six months, indicating a deteriorating working environment for female journalists.