Afghanistan Snapshot: The Acid Attack on My Colleague Razaq Mamoon

The malicious attack on my colleague Razaq Mamoon in Afghanistan came as a shock to me yesterday. I learned that a lone assailant had sprayed acid on Mamoon's face, scarring it badly and injuring his arms and chest.

I heard the news as I was going to court in the US, applying for asylum because of fear of similar attacks. Here I am, trying to prove a journalist’s life isn’t easy in Afghanistan, and I am confronted by unwanted proof. 

During my court hearing, I kept thinking about the attack. Mammon is perhaps one of the best journalists Afghanistan has had in decades. He has been a thorn in the side of corrupt politicians, meddling embassies, and blood-thirsty warlords. And he lives in a country where journalists are about as safe as bait-worms in a pond full of bass.

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