Taliban Ambush Kills 4 Journalists

PARIS, Monday — Three Western reporters were killed in northeast Afghanistan on Sunday when Taliban forces ambushed fighters of the opposition Northern Alliance, their employers said today. They were the first journalists to be killed in the conflict in Afghanistan since the start of U.S.-led military action against the ruling Taliban. French radio reporters Johanne Sutton, 34, and Pierre Billaud, 31, and German journalist Volker Handloik, 40, a freelance working for Stern magazine, had been riding on the roof of an armoured personnel carrier when it came under fire. Sutton worked for Radio France International (RFI) and Billaud reported for Luxembourg-based RTL radio. Colleagues said the journalists were among six reporters who had set out with Northern Alliance forces to try to verify opposition claims to have captured the town of Taloqan. “All three of us were on the back of the APC and we were joking about dragging along our interpreter, who was a bit reluctant about it,” said French radio reporter Veronique Rebeyrotte, who was with Sutton and Billaud. “We never thought we would be taking a risk. Three of us clung on for grim death and we survived,” McGeough reported. AFP Ends