KABUL: A suicide bomber triggered explosives in the Afghan capital on Monday, police said, killing six people and wounding 13 more.
Violence has waned in Afghanistan since the 2021 Taliban takeover. However, several militant groups remain active including the regional chapter of Daesh.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Monday afternoon’s attack, which took place in the Qala-e-Bakhtiar area of Kabul’s southern outskirts.
Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran said “a person wearing explosives on his body detonated,” and one woman was among the fatalities.
“The injured were transferred to hospitals on time and investigations are ongoing,” he posted on social media platform X.
Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities have declared security their highest priority since surging back to power following the chaotic withdrawal of foreign forces three years ago.
While their sweeping security operations have led to a decline in militants challenging their rule, according to analysts, they also downplay or delay confirmation of attacks.
The last suicide attack in Afghanistan claimed by the regional chapter of Daesh was in the southern city of Kandahar — the Taliban’s historic stronghold — in March.
Taliban authorities said only three people were killed while a hospital source put the toll far higher at 20.
Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP last month that Daesh “existed here before but we suppressed them very hard.”
“No such groups exist here that can pose a threat to anyone,” he said.
Six killed, 13 wounded in Kabul suicide bombing
https://arab.news/28bz3
Six killed, 13 wounded in Kabul suicide bombing
- Afghan Taliban declared security their highest priority since surging back to power three years ago
- Violence has waned in Afghanistan, though several militant groups remain active including Daesh
Row erupts in UK over support for British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah
- Arab Spring campaigner’s ‘abhorrent’ social media posts resurface after he arrived in Britain following release from Egyptian prison
- PM Starmer criticized for glowing welcome to activist who had previously been supported by both Tory and Labour governments
LONDON: The UK prime minister is facing criticism after he celebrated the return to Britain of a human rights activist who was recently released from an Egyptian prison but whose past social media posts apparently contained violent and antisemitic language.
Successive British governments have campaigned for the release of Alaa Abd El-Fattah, a dual national who had been imprisoned in Egypt for most of the past 14 years. He returned to the UK on Friday after Egyptian authorities lifted a travel ban that had forced him to remain in the country since he was freed in September.
But a senior member of the opposition Conservative Party on Saturday criticized Prime Minister Keir Starmer for giving a “personal, public endorsement” to Abd El-Fattah when Starmer said he was “delighted” the activist had been reunited with his family in Britain.
Robert Jenrick, the Conservative spokesman on justice issues, demanded to know whether Starmer knew about historical social media posts in which Abd El-Fattah allegedly endorsed killing “Zionists’’ and police. Jenrick also called on Starmer to condemn Abd El-Fattah’s statements and withdraw his “unalloyed endorsement” of the activist.
“Nobody should be imprisoned arbitrarily nor for peaceful dissent,’’ Jenrick wrote. “But neither should the prime minister place the authority of his office behind someone whose own words cross into the language of racism and bloodshed.”
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said in a statement that it had been “a long-standing priority” of governments under both major parties to work for Abd El-Fattah’s release. But that does not imply an endorsement of his social media posts, the spokesman said.
“The government condemns Mr. El-Fattah’s historic tweets and considers them to be abhorrent,” the statement said, using a slightly different style for his last name.
Abd El-Fattah’s family in the UK had vigorously campaigned for his release, arguing that he had spent most of the past 14 years behind bars because of his opposition to the government of President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi.
His mother, Laila Soueif, 69, staged a 10-month hunger strike to pressure British authorities to do more to secure her son’s release.
Starmer on Friday paid tribute to Abd El-Fattah’s family and all the others who campaigned for his freedom.
“I’m delighted that Alaa Abd El-Fattah is back in the UK and has been reunited with his loved ones, who must be feeling profound relief,” Starmer said.
But soon after Abd El-Fattah arrived at London’s Heathrow Airport, critics began circulating historical social media posts in which he appeared to endorse the killing of Zionists and police.
The Times of London reported that Abd El-Fattah has previously said the comments were taken out of context and were part of a “private conversation” that took place during an Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip.
Abd El-Fattah’s press team didn’t immediately response to a request for comment, and it was not immediately clear whether the posts were authentic.
