Monday, March 23, 2015

Woman Beaten to Death by Mob, Set on Fire and Thrown in River ‘Completely Innocent’ of Burning Koran

KABUL, Afghanistan (TheBlaze/AP) — An Afghan woman who was beaten to death by a mob was buried in Kabul on Sunday, her coffin carried aloft by women’s rights activists.

Hundreds of people gathered in northern Kabul for the funeral of 27-year-old Farkhunda, who like many Afghans is known by only one name.

Some Afghan officials and religious leaders sought to justify Farkhunda’s killing, alleging that she had burned a Koran.

But at her graveside, the head of the Interior Ministry’s criminal investigation directorate, Gen. Mohammad Zahir, said no evidence had been found to support those allegations.

“We have reviewed all the evidence and have been unable to find any single iota of evidence to support claims that she had burned a Koran,” Zahir said. “She is completely innocent.”

He said that 13 people had been arrested in connection with her killing.

President Ashraf Ghani condemned Farkhunda’s killing as a “heinous attack” and ordered an investigation.