Attack on govt building in Kabul leaves 43 dead
No militant group has claimed responsibility for the attack
KABUL: Afghan authorities on Tuesday collected 43 bodies from a government compound in the capital Kabul that was targeted by a suicide bomber and extremists armed with assault rifles on Monday, officials said.
The attack began when the suicide bomber blew up his explosives-laden car in front of a government building that houses a public welfare department. Some of the attackers rampaged through the building of the Ministry for Martyrs and Disabled Persons taking workers hostage, and others fought a prolonged gun battle with local security forces.
Health ministry spokesman Wahid Majroh said so far 43 bodies and 10 injured had been transported by ambulances from the attack site. One policeman was killed and three militants were gunned down during seven hours of fighting inside the compound.
Afghan forces evacuated over 350 civilians from the building before calling off the operation on Monday night. No militant group has claimed responsibility for the complex attack that was identical to previous strikes by Taliban insurgents. Abdullah Abdullah, the government’s chief executive, blamed the Taliban for the attack. “The ‘Taliban’ crime syndicate must know that with every attack they carry out against our people our resolve is further strengthened to eliminate them. Their conduct is a disgrace to the very notion of peace,” he tweeted. But Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement that the group was not involved in the attack on Monday. The latest assault came just days after US President Donald Trump said he was considering pulling out at least 5,000 of the 14,000 US troops currently in Afghanistan.
Even as diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict intensified, fighting between the Taliban and Afghan forces backed by foreign troops has not subsided. In the north, Taliban fighters killed a district police chief and kept up the pressure to seize control over parts of Faryab province on Tuesday. Karim Youresh, a spokesman for the Faryab police said the police chief died in clashes in the Garziwan district that also killed 16 insurgents.
In eastern Nangarhar province, the Taliban killed eight progovernment militia members and injured 12 during clashes in the Bati Kot district.
PAK, CHINA DISCUSS AFGHAN SITUATION
The US decision to pull nearly half its troops from Afghanistan was high on the agenda at a meeting between the Pakistani and Chinese foreign ministers on Tuesday.
As China looks to expand its role as a peace broker in South Asia, Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi during an official visit to Beijing.
“The two sides agreed that a military means cannot solve the Afghan issue, and that promoting a political solution focused on reconciliation is the only realistic and feasible way,” Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a regular press briefing. Both sides reiterated their determination to adopt a joint course of action for regional peace and stability, to promote connectivity and work for Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process, she added.