(25 Dec 2018) A suicide bomber targeted a gathering of Muslim religious scholars in the Afghan capital on November 20th 2018, killing at least 40 people, Afghan officials said.
A Public Health Ministry spokesman said another 60 people were wounded in the attack, which took place as Muslims around the world marked the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad.
He said the toll could rise.
The suicide bomber was able to sneak into a wedding hall in Kabul where hundreds of religious scholars and clerics had gathered to mark the occasion.
No one immediately claimed the attack, but both the Taliban and a local Islamic State (IS) affiliate have targeted religious scholars aligned with the government in the past.
Both militant groups want to overthrow the US-backed government and impose a harsh form of Islamic rule, but they are bitterly divided over leadership and ideology, and they have clashed on a number of occasions.
***
On November 28th Taliban insurgents staged a coordinated attack targeting a security firm in the eastern part of the capital, killing at least 10 people and wounding 19 others when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and fighters engaged security forces in a gun battle, Afghan officials said.
The attack came hours after provincial officials said at least 30 civilians were killed along with 16 Taliban fighters during an overnight battle between Afghan government forces and insurgents in southern Helmand province.
The attacks were the latest in a series of brutal and near-daily Taliban assaults on military and police forces and government and other installations throughout the country. The resurgent Taliban, who in recent years have taken over nearly half of Afghanistan, claimed the attack in Kabul.
A Kabul police spokesman said the target of the attack was a security company called G4S. He had no details on the company, but the website of a multinational security company named G4S has London contact information.
The Taliban view the U.S.-backed government in Kabul as a dysfunctional Western puppet and have refused repeated offers to negotiate with it. They carry out near-daily attacks on Afghan security forces.
U.S. and NATO troops formally concluded their combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014, but still provide close support to Afghan forces and carry out counterterrorism operations. Some 15,000 American forces are currently serving in Afghanistan.
Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Taliban, claimed responsibility for November 28th's attack in a statement posted on Twitter.
***
An Afghan official said that the death toll from a Christmas Eve attack in the capital has climbed to 43 as emergency workers continued the search for bodies in the smoldering public welfare building early on Tuesday.
Employees of the department for martyrs and disabled persons were among the causalities of the brazen hours-long coordinated assault in Kabul on December 24th.
Khalilur Rahman, an official at the department for martyrs and disabled persons, described how the gunmen entered the building and rampaged through the office complex.
A suicide bomber and gunmen armed with assault rifles and explosives attacked the building, setting off an eight-hour-long siege.
No one has claimed the attack, but both the Taliban and an Islamic State affiliate frequently target government officials and security forces.
From his hospital bed, Abdul Jalil recalled how the gunman came to the upper floors and began "opening fire on everybody."
One of the attackers died when he detonated his explosives-laden vehicle outside the building.
Another three gunmen were killed in the shootout.
01:00:00

Find out more about AP Archive: [ Ссылка ]
Twitter: [ Ссылка ]
Facebook: [ Ссылка ] ​​
Instagram: [ Ссылка ]


You can license this story through AP Archive: [ Ссылка ]

свернуть