Afghan Girl Shoots Three Taliban Dead After They Killed Her Parents

Local officials in Afghanistan have confirmed that a young girl shot three Taliban fighters dead after her parents, supporters of the local government, were murdered by them.

Last week, a group of 40 Taliban insurgents arrived at Geriveh, a village in the central Ghor province of the country and some of the fighters went to the home of 16-year-old Qamar Gul, which she shared with her brother and parents.

They knocked on the door of the family home on 17 July at 1am, looking for Gul’s father. Her mother refused to open the door, after seeing they were armed. The fighters shot her dead, then entered the house and shot her father.

The teenager, having just witnessed the murder of her parents, picked up a rifle and shot the attackers dead. She and her 12-year-old brother Habibullah then battled the Taliban for an hour until eventually other villagers and militia expelled them from the village.

The siblings were taken to a safe place in the capital, and after their initial shock, they are apparently now in good health. Their bravery has been praised by the Afghan government and the pair have been invited to the presidential palace by President Ashraf Ghani.