A suicide car bombing in Kabul aimed at a senior government official killed one civilian and wounded three others on Saturday but did not harm its apparent target, Afghan security officials said.
Kabul police spokesman Hashmat Stanikzai said a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-laden vehicle alongside the armoured car of Mohammed Masoom Stanikzai, a senior official in the High Peace Council, a government body tasked with peace talks with the Taliban insurgency. The two men are not related.
Shafiullah, a police officer at the scene, said Mr. Mohammed Masoom Stanikzai, who also serves as an adviser to President Hamid Karzai, was not harmed because he was travelling in an armoured car. He said that while the explosion was “very strong” it took place early in the morning when the streets were relatively empty. Like many Afghans, the police officer only has one name.
No group claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Taliban frequently launch suicide attacks against Afghan civilians, government officials and security forces.
The attack came a week after a Presidential runoff to choose a successor to Mr. Karzai.
DPA reports from Kabul:
ROADSIDE BOMB KILLS THREE U.S. SOLDIERS
Three U . S. soldiers and a military dog were killed in a roadside bombing in southern Afghanistan, officials said on Saturday.
The NATO-led international military said, “Three International Security Assistance Force service members and one ISAF canine died following an improvised explosive device attack in southern Afghanistan.” A police source said the soldiers were Americans and the attack took place in the volatile province of Helmand.
“The bomb was concealed on a motorbike and detonated close to a US vehicle patrolling in Nad Ali district,” he said.
Taliban militants claimed responsibility for the attack.
