Jalalabad (Afghanistan) (AFP)

Indignation, anger and dread were once again widely shared Wednesday in Afghanistan, where the funeral of three young employees of a television station, murdered the day before in Jalalabad (east) took place.

The three women, aged 17 to 21, worked in the dubbing department of the local channel Enekaas TV.

They were shot dead in two separate attacks as they left their office to walk home.

"I lost my sister. I am burying her today with all her dreams. She wanted to go to university, study law ...", told AFP Rohan Sadat, the brother of Sadia Sadat. , one of the victims, during the burial in Jalalabad.

"I do not know why the militants target young innocent women", also reacted Mohammad Nazif, a cousin of Nadia Sadat.

At just 18, she joined Enekaas TV "to earn money and support her family" who were "very happy that she was working on television," Nazif told AFP.

Targeted killings of journalists, judges, doctors, political and religious figures, and human rights defenders have become increasingly frequent in recent months in Afghanistan.

These killings sowed terror in the country and prompted members of civil society to go into hiding or exile.

The media, Enekaas TV in particular, have taken a heavy toll.

In early December, a channel presenter, Malalai Maiwand, had already been shot dead with her driver in Jalalabad on her way to her office.

At least nine media workers have been murdered since early November, according to the Committee to Protect Afghan Journalists (AJSC).

"Three innocent girls were killed in broad daylight in the center of the city. No one is safe," said one of their colleagues, on condition of anonymity.

This wave of killings coincided with the opening in September in Doha of peace negotiations between the Taliban and the Afghan government, intended to end two decades of war.

The Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for Tuesday's double attack, like others before.

But the Afghan government and the United States continue to blame the Taliban for these targeted assassinations, even though the Taliban strongly rejects the accusation.

The Afghan secret services suspect the Haqqani network, a bloodthirsty group linked to the Taliban and which carries out their most complex operations, to be behind these killings.

They believe that the Taliban are very happy to see ISIS, which although weakened in recent years has maintained a presence in the east of the country, take credit for it.

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