Thousands of Afghans marched through the streets of the country's capital, Kabul, on Wednesday, carrying the coffins of seven people kidnapped and beheaded by militants last weekend.
The demonstrators called for justice, chanting "We want peace" and "Death to Taliban & ISIS" as they marched to the presidential palace displaying gruesome images of the victims with their throats slashed through.
Some estimates put the crowd at around 20,000 people.
1000's of people out in #Kabul today demanding justice for beheaded #Afghans pic.twitter.com/p44uZcSfx1
— Mohammad Jawad (@MohammadJawad4) November 11, 2015
Protesters chanting "We want peace," "Death to Taliban & ISIS." People as far as eye can see, #Kabul protest pic.twitter.com/Fol22FGbp2
— Mohammad Jawad (@MohammadJawad4) November 11, 2015
Police fired the shots in the air to disperse the protesters as the approached the palace, the BBC reported.
One user posted a video on Twitter in which the shots are audible. It shows people fleeing the scene. The BBC said seven people were injured.
Firing in #arg pic.twitter.com/4xU40uLqaC
— B Haidary (@HaidaryBaqir) November 11, 2015
The victims included four men, two women and a 9-year-old girl named Shukria. Several protesters carried banners adorned with her name and face.
Protesters: #shukria was sister of all #Afghans. @washingtonpost #StopKillingHazaras @Paiwandgah #BBC @bbcpersian pic.twitter.com/ddvfvWVQgV
— Reza Ehsan (@MrezaEhsan) November 11, 2015
Afghans on Twitter shared images of the girl using a hashtag #Shukria.
#Shukria (RIP) - 9yr old #Hazara girl whose life was snuffed by #Saudi's ideology of hate | #ZabulBeheading pic.twitter.com/x1kn9TqRtL
— hazara.net (@hazaranet) November 11, 2015
Name of Afghan girl beheaded by radicals is #Shukria. This is her pic. Least we can do is remember her name &face: pic.twitter.com/4sCYUTovF9
— Jenan Moussa (@jenanmoussa) November 11, 2015
Shukria and the six other victims were ethnic Hazaras, a minority Persian-speaking group in Afghanistan who are mostly Shia Muslims.
The seven Hazaras were abducted and killed after fighting broke out between two rival Taliban factions last weekend in the southern province of Zabul. It is unclear who carried out the murders.
The BBC, citing a hostage released after the killings, said the killers may have been Uzbek fighters.
The United Nations on Wednesday condemned the killings calling the murder of civilian hostages, including women and children, "particularly abhorrent."
"These senseless murders may amount to war crimes and the perpetrators must be held accountable," said Nicholas Haysom, secretary-general's special representative for Afghanistan.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani reportedly condemned the murders as a "heartless killing of innocent individuals" which had no justification in any religion and ordered his security services to track down the killers.
President @ashrafghani condoles #ZabulSeven victims family members at the palace. #Afghanistan #StopKillingAfghans pic.twitter.com/dTYw61umI1— Bashir Ahmad Gwakh (@bashirgwakh) November 11, 2015