Protest at Kabul bomb site turns deadly
KABUL, Afghanistan — A protest Friday that began at the site of a huge bombing in Kabul earlier this week and made its way to the gates of the Afghan presidential palace turned deadly, with security forces firing to disperse angry crowds trying to get inside.
At least four dead and 15 wounded people were taken to Emergency Hospital, one of Kabul’s main trauma centers, according to the hospital. One witness said he had seen at least six dead bodies.
The Kabul police chief, Gen. Hassan Shah Frogh, said some of the protesters were carrying weapons and had fired at the police, wounding four officers. “Police also fired, and only one or two protesters may be wounded,” he said.
Video from the protest showed officers firing in the crowd’s direction, but it was unclear whether those bullets were hitting anyone.
Gen. Frogh added that Salem Izidyar, son of the deputy speaker of the senate, was among the protesters who had been killed.
Haroon Mutaref, one of the protest organizers, said the demonstrations would continue despite the clashes. “We are still here, although the police shot at people,” he said. “We are here, and we will not leave until we reach our goal of getting justice.”
The police also fired water cannons and tear gas into the crowd.
With emotions running high after the clashes, there were fears that political strongmen might try to take advantage of the anger produced by the bombing deaths to move against the government.
“No one can stop people from protesting, and they used force. They rammed military vehicles into crowds setting up protest tents,” said Gul Haider, a former warlord from the northern part of the country and military commander who joined the protests after he heard news of the clashes. “If we wanted to push our way in, we would havereached the palace.”
He said he had seen dozens of wounded at the hospital, and six dead bodies from the protest.
Several hours after the protests began, President Ashraf Ghani put out a lengthy statementasking for calm.
“Civil and peaceful protests are the rights of all citizens of the country,” Mr. Ghani’s statement said. “But among them, those who want to agitate and hurt public order, their issue is separate — theywill not be allowed to use the people’s emotions against the people’s interest.”
Mr. Ghani’s coalition partner, the government’s chief executive Abdullah Abdullah, put out a video message saying the administration was ready to sit down for talks with the protesters.
Amnesty International has calledfor an investigation into the use of force by security agencies against protesters, saying it “illustrates the authorities’ contempt for the lives”of the Afghan public.
“While there are reports that a minority of protesters used violence including throwing stones at the police, this does not justify such an excessive and deadly response,” said Biraj Patnaik, Amnesty International’s South Asia director.
The protests began peacefully Friday morning, as hundreds of people from across the city chanted for the government to resign as they gathered near the bombing site, in the city’s diplomatic quarter.