Telecoms Engineer Executed in Afghanistan

A telecoms engineer working for the Afghani GSM network, Roshan has been found executed following his kidnapping at the weekend. K. Suryanarayana, 41 from Hyderabad, India was found beheaded in southern Afghanistan on Sunday. The Taliban militia has claimed responsibility. He had been driving along the Kandahar-Kabul highway in the Hassan Kariez district of Zabul, with a local driver.

Suryanarayana worked for a Bahrain-based company, al-Moayed, which has been contracted to help expand Roshan's network across this country's volatile southern provinces. Al-Moayed Group's Afghanistan Operations was contracted to deliver Microwave Radio Solutions to Roshan. The multi-million dollar solution provides for varied ranges of SDH & PDH Connectivities across the country.

Suryanarayana was reportedly killed during an escape attempt from his kidnappers. "He was in a room with one guard. He attacked the guard and punched him, went out of the building running and a Mujahedin shot him dead," Taliban spokesman Qari Mohammad Yousuf said via a phone call to the Reuters news agency. However, this may not be the case as the engineer was not found shot, but deliberately executed. Taliban militants had demanded that the Indian government withdrew all its workers from Afghanistan within 24 hours.

Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi said the Taliban's council of leaders was "saddened" by the incident.

Suryanarayana was a student of the BVB College of Engineering & Technology, Hubli and graduated as engineer in 1987-88. He is survived by his wife, Manjula and three children."

Posted to the site on 2nd May 2006