Swedish Cameraman Killed in Northern Afghanistan

TALOQAN, Afghanistan (news - web sites) (Reuters) - Gunmen broke into a house where Swedish journalists were staying and shot dead a cameraman Tuesday in the northern Afghan city of Taloqan, held by the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance, colleagues said.

They said Oluf Stromberg, 42, of Sweden's TV4 channel, had been killed during an armed robbery.

He was the eighth journalist to be killed in Afghanistan since the United States launched its campaign against the hard-line Taliban militia and Osama bin Laden, chief suspect in the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington.

Rolf Porseryd, a correspondent for TV4, told Reuters three turbaned gunmen with Kalashnikov rifles and knives had broken into the house where he, Stromberg, two other Swedish journalists and an Afghan translator were staying at about 2 a.m.

He said the gunmen had first gone into a room where Martin Adler and Bo Liden, both of the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, were sleeping. They demanded and were given money.

``One guy told Martin, 'Now we are going to take you outside and kill you','' Porseryd said. The translator pleaded with the gunmen for the journalists' lives, saying it was the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the foreigners had families at home.

The gunmen moved to another room where Stromberg and Porseryd were sleeping soundly. Stromberg went to the door and slammed it shut when he saw the gunmen.

``There were two shots and I heard Oluf crying out 'I've been shot, I'm dying' as he fell back,'' Porseryd said.

Stromberg had been hit in the chest by one bullet fired through the door. The other bullet, fired through the window by a fourth gunmen, hit a wall.

Stromberg was taken to a local hospital, but nothing could be done to save him.

The gunmen made off with a satellite telephone and several thousand dollars.

Scores of foreign journalists have been based in Taloqan, covering the Northern Alliance's sweep through former Taliban territory, including the city of Kunduz, about 37 miles to the west, which fell Monday.

Most now planned to evacuate Taloqan for neighboring Tajikistan.

-- Anonymous, November 27, 2001