KANDAHAR – Two civilians died and 11 others were injured in a Taliban suicide car bomb attack targeting a district governor in southern Afghanistan Saturday, local officials said.
The attack near Kandahar city — the spiritual home of the Taliban — targeted the governor of Dand district, Ahmadullah Nazak, but he escaped unhurt, officials said. “At around 2:00pm, a suicide bomber detonated his vehicle packed with explosives near the convoy of Dand district chief Ahmadullah Nazak,” provincial spokesman Zalmai Ayoobi told AFP.
“The governor was not hurt in the blast, but two civilians were killed.”
Officials later added that 11 more people were hurt and one of those killed was a teenager. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. Kandahar has a heavy presence of international troops and the attack comes two days after the United States said in a review that progress was being made in the war, although consolidation of gains was needed.
