A minivan explodes in Kabul, killing at least 3 civilians and wounding 4 others

A bomb stuck to a minivan exploded in Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul on Tuesday, killing at least three civilians and wounding four others, a Taliban official said. (AP/File)
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Updated 09 January 2024
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A minivan explodes in Kabul, killing at least 3 civilians and wounding 4 others

  • Police have launched an investigation and one suspect has been detained
  • Daesh group’s affiliate in the region has in the past carried out attacks often targeting Shiites

ISLAMABAD: A bomb stuck to a minivan exploded in Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul on Tuesday, killing at least three civilians and wounding four others, a Taliban official said.
Police spokesman Khalid Zadran said the explosion occurred in the eastern part of the city, in Alokhail area. Police have launched an investigation and one suspect has been detained, he said.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Daesh group’s affiliate in the region has in the past carried out attacks often targeting Shiites, whom Daesh considers to be apostates.
Over the weekend, Daesh group claimed responsibility for a minibus explosion in western Kabul that killed at least five people.
The IS affiliate has been a major rival of the Taliban since the latter seized control of Afghanistan in August 2021 as US and other troops withdrew. Daesh militants have struck in Kabul and in northern provinces.


Chinese carrier conducting intense air operations near Japan, Tokyo says

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Chinese carrier conducting intense air operations near Japan, Tokyo says

  • Japan on Sunday summoned China’s ambassador to protest “dangerous” and “regrettable” acts by the carrier’s planes
  • The Chinese embassy responded that Japanese aircraft had endangered flight safety by approaching the carrier

TOKYO: A Chinese carrier strike group sailing close to Japan kept up intense air operations on Sunday as it sailed into the Pacific Ocean east of the Okinawa Islands, Japan’s Self-Defense Forces said Monday.
The naval drills came amid growing tension between the East Asian neighbors and triggered a flurry of protests, with Tokyo accusing Beijing on Sunday of dangerous behavior. Japan said fighters from the Liaoning aircraft carrier aimed radar beams at Japanese jets scrambled to shadow its movements.
Illuminating an aircraft with a radar beam signals a potential attack that may force targeted planes to take evasive action.
Aircraft aboard the carrier conducted around 100 takeoffs and landings over the weekend, Japan’s SDF said.
Japan on Sunday summoned China’s ambassador, Wu Jianghao, to protest “dangerous” and “regrettable” acts by the carrier’s planes.
Japan will “respond calmly but firmly and continue to monitor the movements of Chinese forces in the waters around our country,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said at a regular press briefing on Monday.
The Chinese embassy in a statement denied Tokyo’s claims, saying that Japanese aircraft had endangered flight safety by approaching the carrier as it conducted training with its three missile-destroyer escorts.
“China solemnly demands that Japan stop smearing and slandering, strictly restrain its frontline actions, and prevent similar incidents from happening again,” it said.
Kihara rejected the claim that Japan’s aircraft endangered flight safety on the carrier.
The encounters marked the most serious run-ins between the two militaries in years and risk worsening relations already strained after Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi warned that Tokyo could respond to any Chinese action against Taiwan that threatened Japan’s security.