Official says several bombs at Afghan cricket match kill 8

Afghan relatives move a victim onto a bed as he receives treatment at a hospital following multiple explosions targeted a cricket Stadium in Jalalabad on May 19, 2018. (AFP)
Updated 19 May 2018
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Official says several bombs at Afghan cricket match kill 8

  • Several bombs exploded nearly simultaneously at a cricket match in Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province
  • The attack happened as hundreds of spectators gathered for a night-time tournament during the holy month of Ramadan

KABUL, Afghanistan: Several bombs exploded nearly simultaneously at a cricket match in Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province, killing at least eight people, a provincial official said Saturday.
Attahullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor, said about 45 others were wounded at the sports stadium late Friday night in the provincial capital Jalalabad.
The attack happened as hundreds of spectators gathered for a night-time tournament during the holy month of Ramadan. Khogyani said the deputy provincial mayor of neighboring Laghman province and the main organizer of the tournament were among those killed.
In a statement, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani strongly condemned the attack, saying that carrying out such an attack during the holy month proved once again that terrorists are not true believers of any religion or faith and “are enemies of humanity.”
The three bombs exploded nearly at the same time, Khogyani said.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but both Taliban insurgents and Daesh are active in eastern Afghanistan, especially in Nangarhar province.


Brazil’s Lula accuses Trump of seeking to forge ‘new UN’

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (L) and US President Donald Trump. (AFP file photo)
Updated 24 January 2026
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Brazil’s Lula accuses Trump of seeking to forge ‘new UN’

  • Lula defended multilateralism against what he called “the law of the jungle” in global affairs
  • Key US allies including France and Britain have also expressed doubts

BRASILIA: Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva accused Donald Trump on Friday of trying to create “a new UN” with his proposed “Board of Peace.”
The veteran leftist joins other world leaders who have avoided signing up for Trump’s new global conflict resolution organization, where a permanent seat costs $1 billion and the chairman is Trump himself.
“Instead of fixing” the United Nations, “what’s happening? President Trump is proposing to create a new UN where only he is the owner,” Lula said.
Trump unveiled his “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos Thursday, joined on stage by leaders and officials from 19 countries to sign its founding charter.
Lula defended multilateralism against what he called “the law of the jungle” in global affairs.
His remarks come a day after he spoke by phone with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who urged his counterpart to safeguard the “central role” of the United Nations in international affairs.
In his remarks on Friday, Lula said “the UN charter is being torn.”
Although originally intended to oversee Gaza’s rebuilding, the board’s charter does not seem to limit its role to the Palestinian territory and appears to want to rival the United Nations.
Key US allies including France and Britain have also expressed doubts.
London balked at the inclusion of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose forces are fighting in Ukraine after invading in 2022.
France said the charter as it currently stood was “incompatible” with its international commitments, especially its UN membership.