The shooting death of Lebanese Minister Pierre Gemayel and the poisoning of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko were the most prominent political murders of 2006. But, as this week’s List shows, their assassinations aren’t the only ones setting off political crises and stoking intrigue.
Afghanistan Who: Safia Ama Jan, director of Afghanistan’s Ministry of Women’s Affairs for the Kandahar Province When: The 63-year-old former teacher, who ran underground schools for girls during the Taliban’s reign, was gunned down in front of her home on Sept. 25, 2006. Why: Jan’s murder came during a particularly restive season of increased attacks by Taliban militants in southern Afghanistan. Her advocacy for women’s rights and education—nearly 1,000 women in Kandahar attended her vocational schools in recent years—made her a prime target for insurgents intent on derailing any progress by Afghan women since the fall of the Taliban five years ago. Who: Hakim Taniwal, governor of Afghanistan’s southeastern Paktia Province, the highest-ranking official to be killed since the Taliban began its 2005 insurgency. When: Taniwal, 63 and a close friend of President Hamid Karzai, was killed along with two staff members by a suicide bomber outside the governor’s office on Sept. 10, 2006. Why: The former university professor’s death was part of a concerted effort by Taliban militants to target high-ranking Afghan officials. Two other governors and a member of parliament had earlier escaped similar attacks. At Taniwal’s funeral, another suicide bomber struck, killing several people at the service.
Nigeria Who: Ayodeji Daramola, leading candidate for governor in the southwestern state of Ekiti When: The 53-year-old World Bank consultant was murdered in his bedroom in Ijan-Ekiti on Aug. 14, 2006, shortly after returning home from a political rally. Why: With elections set for April 2007, term limits are putting many governorships in Nigeria up for grabs, and fierce political rivalries—particularly between those vying for a place in strongman President Olusegun Obasanjo’s party—are at a violent peak.  AFP/Getty Images Who: Funsho Williams, a candidate for governor of Lagos When: The 58-year-old Williams was found stabbed and strangled in his Lagos home on July 27, 2006. Why: Like Daramola, Williams belonged to the president’s governing People’s Democratic Party, and he was looking to gain control of the critical Lagos state, the country’s wealthiest, from the opposition. A rival candidate has been arrested in connection with the murder, but so have Williams’s campaign manager, maid, and guards.
Russia Who: Andrei Kozlov, deputy chairman of Russia’s Central Bank, known for his efforts to increase transparency in the banking sector When: The 41-year-old Kozlov was gunned down along with his driver in an apparent contract hit outside a Moscow soccer stadium on Sept. 13, 2006. He was the highest-ranking civil servant murdered since President Vladimir Putin came to power in 2000 vowing to clean up Russia’s bloody, “Wild East” days of the 1990s. Why: The well-respected banker had pushed through impressive reforms of Russia’s financial sector, withdrawing the licenses of hundreds of banks found to be involved in money laundering. Who: Anna Politkovskaya, a pioneering journalist known for her critical coverage of the war in Chechnya and Putin’s increasing power in Russia When: The 48-year-old Politkovskaya was shot to death in an apparent contract killing in the elevator of her Moscow apartment building on Oct. 7, 2006. Why: Despite being a savage critic of the Kremlin and one of the most prominent journalists in Russia, Putin remarked three days after her murder that Politkovskaya “had no influence on political life” in the country. A former KGB spy investigating her death, Alexander Litvinenko, made headlines around the world when he died last week from radioactive poisoning in London. Theories on Politkovskaya’s death generally fall into two camps: that she was murdered as retribution for her writing on Chechnya, or by enemies of Putin who knew her death would feed conspiracy theories at home and abroad about the Kremlin’s strong-arm tactics.
Sri Lanka Who: Maj. Gen. Parami Kulatunga, the chief of staff of the Sri Lankan Army When: A suicide bomber on motorcycle killed the 54-year-old Kulatunga as he traveled to a military camp on the outskirts of Colombo on June 26, 2006. Why: The military pinned blame on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who have waged a nearly 25-year struggle for independence from the government. Tensions have risen steadily since Kulatunga’s killing, which, according to a pro-rebel Web site, was inspired by increased military attacks on rebel leaders. This week, the leader of the Tamil Tigers said the truce with the military, negotiated in 2002, was “defunct.” Who: Kethesh Loganathan, human rights advocate and deputy head of the government peace secretariat When: Loganathan, 54, was killed by gunmen outside his home in Colombo on Aug. 12, 2006. Why: The Tamil moderate was a vociferous critic of the Tamil Tigers, a dissenting voice for whom the rebel group had traditionally shown little patience. A former member of a rival Tamil militant group, Loganathan had long condemned the Tigers’ tactics and human rights record.
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