attack: A suicide bomber in a vehicle attacked foreign military forces in the southern province of Kandahar, killing 11 children
At least eight journalists among 29 people killed in a double suicide attack in Kabul Monday, including a famed photographer who had written of the dangers of reporting in the Afghan capital. The journalists died when a bomber disguised as a TV cameraman detonated a second bomb at the site of an earlier explosion. The Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility for the attack. A militant on a motorbike carried out the first explosion at 8 a.m. in the Shashdarak area in Police District 9 which houses the offices of Afghanistan’s intelligence service, the Defence Ministry, NATO and a number of foreign embassies, prompting journalists to rush to the scene, the Afghan media reported.
A second explosion took place about 20 minutes later as a second attacker, disguised as a cameraman, detonated explosives at the site of the initial blast, targeting journalists and rescue workers at the scene, said Kabul police chief Daoud Amin. Eight journalists and four police officers were among the dead, Interior Ministry spokesperson Najib Danish told the BBC. French news agency Agence France Presse confirmed that its photographer Shah Marai was among the dead.
Forty-nine people were injured in the two explosions and were taken to hospitals, Tolo News cited the Interior Ministry as saying. The militant group said the intelligence services headquarters had been the target. Afghan President Asharf Ghani condemned the twin blasts. “Attacks targeting innocent civilians, worshippers inside the mosques, national and democratic processes, reporters and freedom of speech all are war crimes,” according to a statement released by the Presidential Palace.
Afghanistan has seen a spate of attacks this year. Last week, six people, including two Afghan soldiers, were killed when a car bomb exploded in Afghanistan’s Helmand province. On April 22, an Islamic State suicide bomber attacked a voter registration centre in Kabul, killing 60 people.
Image Courtesy: National Post
