Abdullah unharmed in a bomb attack in Kabul

Abdullah Abdullah, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and candidate in the Afghan presidential election, has managed to emerge unscathed from a double bombing which has been in western Kabul. Two bombs have exploded outside the hotel west of Kabul where he had to hold a rally.

“When I was coming out of the meeting of the Party of Islamic Unity Village, my car was hit by a bomb,” said Abdullah  after the attack.

Police have reported the death of at least six people and wounded about 22. The first of the bombs was detonated by a suicide bomber in a car, a police spokesman told AFP in Kabul. A man wearing an explosive vest detonated his load moments later, the report said. The Deputy Interior Minister Ayoub Salangi said through his official account on the social network Twitter that one of the deceased is a bodyguard and one a traffic police officer, while the rest may be civilian casualties.

Although no one has claimed responsibility for the attack, several media suggest that as part of the Taliban offensive against elections. On Monday, the Taliban threatened in a statement posted on its website not to participate in the second round scheduled for June 14. The EFE notes that terrorists at various times have tried to attack on the grounds that this hotel is used by the U.S. CIA.

The Taliban have denied involving in the attack as a change of strategy after the recent release of their military leader, Mullah Abdul Qayuom, according to the agency Reuters. In the last week of May, violent incidents – including suicide bombings, shootings and bombs – have worsened, according to a security consultant quoted by Reuters. In February, the convoy of Abdullah was shot while traveling between Kabul and Jalalabad.

Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani have to go to a runoff after failing to obtain minimum of 50% of the votes in the first ballot for president. Abdullah was foreign minister (2001-6) in the President Karzai’s Cabinet. He ran for election in 2009, when Hamid Karzai was renewed in the office of president, but withdrew after the first round after denouncing electoral fraud. Ashraf Ghani worked at the World Bank and was finance minister under President Karzai. He renounced U.S. citizenship to run for the elections of 2009.

The date of the second round has been scheduled for June 14. Who ultimately is elected to replace Hamid Karzai will have to deal with the security implications posed by foreign military withdrawal. U.S. President Barack Obama announced 10,000 troops will remain in Afghanistan for joint operations against Al Qaeda and the training and modernization of the Afghan army. Furthermore, the mandate of the UN forces ends in December. Although the current president of Afghanistan has positioned against signing a bilateral agreement to extend and define the U.S. military presence, both candidates for the second round of the presidential were open to sign.

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Posted by Maleeha Tareen on Jun 7 2014. Filed under World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.