Eight die as Taliban raid Afghan MP’s house
Three attackers killed after siege that lasted 10 hours
KABUL // Eight people were killed when Taliban suicide bombers stormed the residence of an Afghan MP in the capital, officials said yesterday. The three attackers were gunned down yesterday after an almost 10-hour siege. Helmand MP Mir Wali survived the assault with injuries but two of his grandsons and bodyguards were among those killed in the attack, which began on Wednesday evening after a recent lull in violence in Kabul. Sporadic gunfire and explosions were heard from the house early yesterday as Afghan forces cordoned off the property to launch a clearance operation.
The Taliban said their suicide bombers raided the house to disrupt a gathering of officials who were meeting to address the deteriorating security situation in Mir Wali’s southern province.
“The president, Ashraf Ghani, strongly condemns the attack on the residence of Helmand MP Mir Wali, which killed two members of his family, a number of his bodyguards and the son of another MP from Uruzgan, Obaidullah Barakzai,” the presidential palace said.
“Mr Ghani aid the attack was an unforgivable crime. Attacking the residence of national personalities cannot be justified in any religion and is against Islamic values.”
Mir Wali was admitted to hospital after jumping from his roof to escape the attack, said Fraidoon Obaidi, chief of Kabul police’s criminal investigation department. The brazen attack underscored the worsening security situation in Afghanistan and highlighted how the Taliban were stepping up targeted attacks on high-level officials.
The militants are escalating their nationwide insurgency despite the onset of winter, when fighting usually ebbs, even as international efforts intensify to restart stalled peace talks.
Fifteen years and hundreds of billions of dollars since the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the security situation in the country remains fraught and Afghan forces are struggling to contain the conflict.