ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — Taliban insurgents
detonated a vehicle-born bomb in eastern Afghanistan Wednesday, killing at
least three people and injuring 15 others.
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Afghan officials said a stolen
explosive-laden Humvee military vehicle was being driven toward a
security-related compound in the provincial capital of Ghazni, but police
forces intercepted and fired rockets at it.
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The clash prompted the suicide bomber to
prematurely explode the bomb, a senior security official told VOA Afghan news
service.
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Ramzan Ali Mohsini, the chief of security
directorate in Ghazni, said the blast killed two police officers and a child
while rescue teams transported 15 injured people to hospital, including 10
civilians.
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The Afghan Interior Ministry said in a
statement the clash killed a total of four Taliban assailants but it did not
elaborate further.
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The Taliban took credit for carrying out
the suicide bombing. Its main spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, claimed the blast
"killed and wounded tens of security forces," although insurgent
claims are often inflated.
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The latest violence comes as U.S. special
reconciliation representative, Zalmay Khalilzad, is due to appear Wednesday
before the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations for a closed hearing on
the Afghan peace process and his ongoing negotiations with the Taliban to try
to bring an end to the war.
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Khalilzad has held several rounds of talks
with insurgent representatives in Qatar, where the Taliban maintains its
informal political office. The two sides have reported "steady but slow
progress" on key issues under discussions. The Taliban has refused to
cease hostilities, however, until it reaches an agreement with the U.S. on
withdrawal of all foreign forces from Afghanistan.
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Credit: voanews.com – 22 May 2019
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