• In this file photo, taken in 2012, AFP photographer Shah Marai, centre, embraces colleagues Massoud Hossaini and Lawrence Bartlett after Hossaini had won the Pulitzer Prize, at the AFP office in Kabul. AFP's chief photographer in Kabul, Shah Marai, was killed in a secondary explosion targeting a group of journalists who had rushed to the scene of a suicide blast in the Afghan capital. Here is a collection of his work. Johannes Eisele / AFP
    In this file photo, taken in 2012, AFP photographer Shah Marai, centre, embraces colleagues Massoud Hossaini and Lawrence Bartlett after Hossaini had won the Pulitzer Prize, at the AFP office in Kabul. AFP's chief photographer in Kabul, Shah Marai, was killed in a secondary explosion targeting a group of journalists who had rushed to the scene of a suicide blast in the Afghan capital. Here is a collection of his work. Johannes Eisele / AFP
  • A woman holds her baby as she and supporters attend the election rally of Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah in Jalalabad. February 18, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
    A woman holds her baby as she and supporters attend the election rally of Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah in Jalalabad. February 18, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
  • A man looks through a broken window at the site of a suicide attack in Kabul. January 26, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
    A man looks through a broken window at the site of a suicide attack in Kabul. January 26, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
  • A man casts his vote at a local polling station in Kabul. April 5, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
    A man casts his vote at a local polling station in Kabul. April 5, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
  • Supporters of presidential candidate Ashraf Ghani jump to cross a ditch as they leave after a gathering on the outskirts of Kunduz province, north of Kabul. March 19, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
    Supporters of presidential candidate Ashraf Ghani jump to cross a ditch as they leave after a gathering on the outskirts of Kunduz province, north of Kabul. March 19, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
  • A father carries his daughter as rain clouds gather in Kabul. April 19, 2015. Shah Marai / AFP
    A father carries his daughter as rain clouds gather in Kabul. April 19, 2015. Shah Marai / AFP
  • Children play football in a field in Kabul. November 23, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
    Children play football in a field in Kabul. November 23, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
  • Visitors ride a fairground ride at the Park Shahar or City Park in Kabul. September 6, 2017. Shah Marai / AFP
    Visitors ride a fairground ride at the Park Shahar or City Park in Kabul. September 6, 2017. Shah Marai / AFP
  • Men hold chains as they wait to take part in ritual self-flagellation to celebrate Ashura, at a mosque in Kabul. January 15, 2008. Shah Marai / AFP
    Men hold chains as they wait to take part in ritual self-flagellation to celebrate Ashura, at a mosque in Kabul. January 15, 2008. Shah Marai / AFP
  • Afghan National Army officers march during a graduation ceremony at the Ghazi Military Training Centre in Kabul. March 31, 2011. Shah Marai / AFP
    Afghan National Army officers march during a graduation ceremony at the Ghazi Military Training Centre in Kabul. March 31, 2011. Shah Marai / AFP
  • Villagers are pictured near the scene in the landslide-hit Aab Bareek village in Argo district of Badakhshan province. May 5, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
    Villagers are pictured near the scene in the landslide-hit Aab Bareek village in Argo district of Badakhshan province. May 5, 2014. Shah Marai / AFP
  • A man digs a grave for one of the 57 victims of a bomb blast before the burial a day after the attack on a voter registration centre in Kabul, on April 23, 2018. Shah Marai / AFP
    A man digs a grave for one of the 57 victims of a bomb blast before the burial a day after the attack on a voter registration centre in Kabul, on April 23, 2018. Shah Marai / AFP

Afghanistan, through the lens of Shah Marai


  • English
  • Arabic

A coordinated double suicide bombing claimed by ISIS killed at least 25 people in central Kabul on Monday morning, including AFP photographer Shah Marai.

Marai and five other journalists were among the more than two dozen killed in the Afghan capital.

AFP has released a collection of his work in the country.

He had been working with the news agency since 1996 when the Taliban ruled the country. He leaves behind a family of six children, including a newborn daughter.

Read more: Twin ISIS suicide bomb attacks kill dozens in Kabul

"This is a devastating blow, for the brave staff of our close-knit Kabul bureau and the entire agency," the agency's global news director Michele Leridon said.

"We can only honour the strength, courage, and generosity of a photographer who covered often traumatic, horrific events with sensitivity and consummate professionalism."