Several mortar shells slammed into various part of Kabul yesterday morning, wounding at least 10 civilians as Afghans marked their country’s Independence Day amid new uncertainties over the start of talks between the Taliban and the Kabul government.
No militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.
Afghan Ministry of Interior Affairs spokesman Tariq Arian said that a total of 14 mortar shells were fired from two vehicles in the northern and eastern parts of the capital. Four children were among the wounded.
Photo: Reuters
“Most of the mortar shells hit residential houses,” Arian said, adding that an investigation is under way.
At least one mortar shell landed in the Wazir Akbar Khan neighborhood, where diplomats and senior government officials reside, said eyewitnesses who spoke on condition of anonymity fearing reprisals.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had finished speaking outside the famous Arg Palace to mark Independence Day when a rocket landed in the compound and wounded six members of his honour guard, two palace officials told reporters on condition of anonymity.
Photo: AFP
He had earlier been at a ceremony at the Afghan Ministry of Defense, inspecting an honor guard and laying flowers on the Independence Minaret monument there.
The attack came a day after the government said it would not release the last 320 Taliban prisoners it is holding until the insurgents free more captured Afghan soldiers.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said that he was not aware of the mortar attack in Kabul.
The Islamic State group’s affiliate, which operates in Afghanistan, has interrupted national celebrations in the past with rocket fire.
The collapse of the Swiss Birch glacier serves as a chilling warning of the escalating dangers faced by communities worldwide living under the shadow of fragile ice, particularly in Asia, experts said. Footage of the collapse on Wednesday showed a huge cloud of ice and rubble hurtling down the mountainside into the hamlet of Blatten. Swiss Development Cooperation disaster risk reduction adviser Ali Neumann said that while the role of climate change in the case of Blatten “still needs to be investigated,” the wider impacts were clear on the cryosphere — the part of the world covered by frozen water. “Climate change and
Poland is set to hold a presidential runoff election today between two candidates offering starkly different visions for the country’s future. The winner would succeed Polish President Andrzej Duda, a conservative who is finishing his second and final term. The outcome would determine whether Poland embraces a nationalist populist trajectory or pivots more fully toward liberal, pro-European policies. An exit poll by Ipsos would be released when polls close today at 9pm local time, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points. Final results are expected tomorrow. Whoever wins can be expected to either help or hinder the
Packed crowds in India celebrating their cricket team’s victory ended in a deadly stampede on Wednesday, with 11 mainly young fans crushed to death, the local state’s chief minister said. Joyous cricket fans had come out to celebrate and welcome home their heroes, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, after they beat Punjab Kings in a roller-coaster Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket final on Tuesday night. However, the euphoria of the vast crowds in the southern tech city of Bengaluru ended in disaster, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra calling it “absolutely heartrending.” Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said most of the deceased are young, with 11 dead
DENIAL: Musk said that the ‘New York Times was lying their ass off,’ after it reported he used so much drugs that he developed bladder problems Elon Musk on Saturday denied a report that he used ketamine and other drugs extensively last year on the US presidential campaign trail. The New York Times on Friday reported that the billionaire adviser to US President Donald Trump used so much ketamine, a powerful anesthetic, that he developed bladder problems. The newspaper said the world’s richest person also took ecstasy and mushrooms, and traveled with a pill box last year, adding that it was not known whether Musk also took drugs while heading the so-called US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) after Trump took power in January. In a
RSS