Published 17:53 IST, September 18th 2019
Afghanistan: Suicide bomber detonates himself inside a govt building
A suicide bomber has detonated inside a government building in eastern Afghanistan, an official said Wednesday, with casualties feared in the war-torn country
A suicide bomber has detonated inside a government building in eastern Afghanistan, a provincial official said Wednesday, with casualties feared in the latest violence to hit the war-torn country.
"Security forces are in the area to rescue the staff" at the electronic identification registration center in Jalalabad, capital of Nangarhar province," said provincial spokesman Ataullah Khogyani.
A war-ravaged country
In other attacks during the early half of 2019, at least 21 people were killed and 50 others injured in a suicide bombing at a crowded market in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province on April 12, in an attack believed to be targeting the Shiite Hazara ethnic minority community. Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the attack and ordered an inquiry.
The explosion at around 7:35 AM took place in the busy wholesale market area of Hazarganj in Quetta where Hazaras and other traders come daily to buy fruits and vegetables to later sell at their shops in other parts of the city.
Bombing amid peace talks
Afghanistan being war-ravaged country, another incident that caused destruction in 2019 was when a Taliban car bomb in eastern Afghanistan on July 7 killed at least 12 people and wounded scores of people, officials said, in a massive blast that came amid ongoing peace talks in Qatar.
The Taliban are meeting with US negotiators and Afghan representatives in Doha as the US pushes to end its 18-year involvement in Afghanistan, but violence from the insurgents and the US military has continued apace.
July's suicide car bomb attack hit the eastern city of Ghazni and targeted an intelligence unit according to the Ghazni provincial governor spokesman Aref Noori.
Wahidullah Mayar, a health ministry spokesman, said 12 people had been killed. Additionally, "179 people, mostly civilians including children, were wounded", he added.
The number of wounded jumped up from an earlier toll of 70 and suggests a massive explosion. The Taliban claimed the attack in a WhatsApp message.
The seventh round of Taliban-US talks is aimed at forging a deal that would see the US military quit Afghanistan in return for various guarantees.
Both sides have reported substantial progress in the talks, which are paused Sunday and Monday while the Taliban meet with Afghan representatives for a so-called intra-Afghan dialogue.
Updated 18:09 IST, September 18th 2019