A suicide bomber attacked an air force bus in
Afghanistan’s capital early Wednesday, killing eight military personnel
and wounding another 13, security officials said.
The Defense Ministry confirmed the number of
casualties in a statement updating a previous toll. Army Gen. Kadamshah
Shahim said the bomber was stopped before he could enter the bus, likely
limiting the number of casualties.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the
attack, with a spokesman for the insurgents, Zabihullah Mujahid,
confirming that the air force bus was the target.
The attack came as the country struggles
through its first democratic transition of power, with one of the
candidates in last month’s presidential runoff alleging fraud. Abdullah
Abdullah, a former foreign minister and one of two candidates vying to
succeed President Hamid Karzai, has warned he will boycott the results
of the June 14 balloting.
Abdullah, who won the first round on April 5
by a wide margin, says supporters of his opponent, former Finance
Minister Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, stuffed ballot boxes and tried to rig
the vote.
According to the official timetable, initial
results are due Wednesday and final results are due on July 22, with the
inauguration date for the new president scheduled for Aug. 2.
Both candidates have promised to sign a
security pact with the United States that would allow nearly 10,000
American forces to remain in the country in a training capacity and to
conduct counterterrorism operations after most foreign troops withdraw
by the end of the year.
But a disruption in the announcement of
election results could mean another delay in finalizing that agreement,
which was rebuffed by Karzai.
No comments:
Post a Comment