Afghan police officers jailed over mob killing of woman

An Afghan court has sentenced 11 police officers to one-year jail terms for their roles in the mob killing of a woman in the Afghan capital, Kabul, in March.

Eight other officers were set free by the court on Tuesday.

Earlier this month four men were sentenced to death by hanging for the brutal murder of the woman named only as Farkhunda.

Prosecutors have alleged that 27-year-old Farkhunda was beaten to death in a frenzied attack sparked by a bogus accusation that she had burned a copy of the Quran.

OPINION: Farkhunda’s murder reveals a nation that has changed

Farkhunda’s brutal killing shocked many Afghans, though some public and religious figures said it would have been justified if she had in fact damaged the Quran. A presidential investigation later found that she had not damaged a copy of the Muslim holy book.

Her last agonising and brutal hours were captured on mobile phone cameras by witnesses and those in the mob that attacked her. The videos of the assault were circulated widely on social media.

They showed Farkhunda – who, like many Afghans, went by only one name – being beaten, run over with a car and burned before her bloodied body was thrown into the river.

The incident sparked nationwide outrage and soul-searching, as well as a civil society movement seeking to limit the power of religious leaders, strengthen the rule of law and improve women’s rights.