3 killed, 6 injured in suicide bombing in E. Afghanistan

3 killed, 6 injured in suicide bombing in E. Afghanistan
Three people including a district police chief were killed and six others were injured Friday when a suicide bomber blew himself up in a mosque during Friday prayer in eastern Afghanistan's Kunar province, police said.

"A suicide bomber detonated his explosive vest inside a mosque in Ghazi Abad district of Kunar province at about 02:00 p.m. local time when people were holding a special Friday praying, as a result three people were killed and six others injured," provincial police chief, Aiwaz Mohammad Nazari told Xinhua.

He said that Ghazi Abad district police chief Ismahil Khan, a police officer and a civilian were confirmed dead in the blast while a policeman and five civilians were wounded in the attack in the province with Asadabad as its capital, 185 km east of capital city of Kabul.

"The suicide bomber was killed on the spot and the injured were transported to a district hospital by police,"the police chief said, adding"an investigation was launched by police into the case." The Friday Prayer, or Namazi Jumu-ah, is a congregational prayer held every Friday by Muslims just after noon.

In unrelated incident, militants have killed three people in eastern Parwan province, an army commander in the province said on Friday.

"Unidentified armed men kidnapped an elder namely Hajji Jamrud and his driver and a bodyguard in Kohi Safi district of Parwan province Thursday night. But their beheaded bodies were found Friday morning," army commander in the province General Abdul Raziq said.

However, some local people in the district said that the elder Jamrud and his men was killed by Taliban over espionage charges for the government and U.S. forces in the province.

Afghan officials and pro-government figures have been repeatedly targeted by the militants since May this year when the Taliban insurgents launched a rebel offensive against Afghan and NATO forces in the country.

The Taliban insurgents has warned the civilians to stay away from official gatherings, military convoys and centers regarded as the legitimate targets by militants besides warning people against supporting government and foreign troops.

Special Report: Afghanistan Situation

Editor: Zhang Xiang

English.news.cn   2011-12-09 18:45:50              
ASADABAD, Afghanistan, Dec. 9 (Xinhua)