Danish Siddiqui, an award-winning Reuters photojournalist from New Delhi, was killed on Friday during clashes in Spin Boldak district near Pakistan border in Kandahar, Reuters said citing Afghan security officials.
Siddiqui, a Pulitzer Award-winning photographer was embedded with the Afghan Army when his unit came under attack from the Taliban.
The Afghan forces were trying to retake the area from Taliban control who are making advances amidst heightened tensions in the region.
“We are urgently seeking more information, working with authorities in the region,” Reuters President Michael Friedenberg and Editor-in-Chief Alessandra Galloni said in a statement.
“Danish was an outstanding journalist, a devoted husband and father, and a much-loved colleague. Our thoughts are with his family at this terrible time.”
Siddiqui was associated with Reuters as a photojournalist since 2010 after a stint as Television news correspondent.
He was the first Indian journalist to win the prestigious Pulitzer Prize in 2018 for his coverage of the Rohingya issue.
The top-notch photojournalist graduated with a degree in Economics from Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi. He had a degree in Mass Communication from the AJK Mass Communication Research Centre at Jamia Millia in 2007.
Jamia Millia Islamia’s AJK Mass Communication Research Centre (AJKMCRC) journalism alumni group condoled his demise in a statement as they showered praises for his achievements in the field.
Siddiqui had covered the Middle East conflict, Hong Kong protests, the Rohingya crisis as well as the Covid crisis.
