UK 'must investigate Afghan raid'

The group asks whether Mr Munadi's recovery was a mission objective

A media watchdog has urged Britain to investigate a military raid that freed a UK journalist from Taliban captors but left his Afghan colleague dead.

In a letter to Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said many questions remained about the death.

Sultan Munadi, 34, was shot and killed in the British-led raid that freed New York Times reporter Stephen Farrell.

Afghan journalists say troops did not prioritise Mr Munadi's safety.

But the British government has defended the operation, saying it represented the best chance of saving lives.

A British soldier and two Afghan civilians also died in the raid.

The two men were seized by the Taliban in northern Kunduz province on 5 September. The operation to free them happened four days later.

A thorough and transparent investigation into the 9 September rescue operation will help strengthen the relationship between Western forces and Afghan civilians Committee to Protect Journalists

Mr Farrell said he and Mr Munadi had run outside when they heard gunfire. Mr Munadi had shouted: "Journalist! Journalist!" but had been shot and had fallen to the ground.

The CPJ urged Mr Brown to investigate whether the recovery of both men had been an "explicit objective" of the military operation.

It called for clarification of the circumstances surrounding Mr Munadi's death and asked whether there was any evidence that he had been shot accidentally by British troops.

The group also raised the issue of whether any attempt had been made to give medical assistance to Mr Munadi and asked why his body had been left at the scene.

Afghan journalists were deeply concerned by the incident, the group said, and a comprehensive inquiry was needed.

"We believe that a thorough and transparent investigation into the 9 September rescue operation will help strengthen the relationship between Western forces and Afghan civilians, whose trust is essential to military success," the group said.