Afghanistan: Suicide bomb kills anti-Taliban elder

May 22, 2013 @ 9:07 am


An Afghan policeman sits on a wall on a mountain overlooking Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, May, 22, 2013. (AP Photo/Ahmad Jamshid) | Zoom

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - A suicide bomber on foot killed an anti-Taliban village elder and at least three other people in a busy marketplace Wednesday in central Afghanistan, the latest in a wave of assassinations and bombings.

Habibullah Khan was killed along with two bodyguards and a civilian bystander in the afternoon attack in Ghazni province's Moqur district, police said. At least 14 civilians were wounded, most of them shoppers and merchants.

Deputy Provincial Police Chief Asadullah Insafi said Khan led an uprising last year against the Taliban's shadow government in his district, driving the insurgents out.

Taliban insurgents have pushed a campaign of assassinations of pro-government figures to try to weaken confidence in Afghan government ahead of the withdrawal of most international forces by the end of next year.

In the past week alone, a provincial council chief along with 13 others were killed in a suicide bombing at the council headquarters, and twin blasts killed nine people in an elite gated community for government officials and business owners outside of the southern city of Kandahar.

The Taliban seek to re-establish the strict interpretation of Islamic law they imposed for five years before being ousted in the 2001 U.S.-led invasion over its sheltering of al-Qaida's leadership.

Another common insurgent tactic is planting makeshift land mines on roads. A suspected bomb maker in Ghazni died Wednesday when explosives he was carrying on a bicycle went off without warning. Two bystanders were wounded, police said.

A motorcycle hit a roadside bomb in the southern province of Helmand on Wednesday. The driver was killed and three bystanders were wounded, said Deputy Provincial Police Chief Ghulam Rabbani Bahawi.


(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
More World News
Top Stories

  • Silicon Sound
    We have more high-paying high-tech jobs than we can fill

  • Heartstopping
    Daredevils post breathtaking pictures atop Seattle landmarks
MyNorthwest.com - Purpose of Comments statement
Bonneville Media encourages site users to express their opinions by posting comments. Our goal is to maintain a civil dialogue in which readers feel comfortable. At times, the comments can descend to personal attacks. Please do not engage in such behavior. We encourage your thoughtful comments which: have a positive and constructive tone, are on topic, are respectful toward others and their opinions. Bonneville reserves the right to remove comments which do not conform to these criteria.

Comments (1)


  • Add A Comment

  • hnuh wrote...
    02-19-2013
    February 19, 2013 2:04 pm
    Dear leader, the one, the anointed one, the light worker, the healer of the planet, lowerer of sea levels, restorer of respect for America in the world, received a Nobel Peace Prize before he had done anything at all. Now the dear one, international terrorist, war criminal, savage, murdering evil one slaughters civilians in the most cowardly and indiscriminate way in far off lands to the cheers of our magnificently hypocritical leftists.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }