Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
3 Top Afghan Officials Killed by Guards But US General Survives
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
October 18, 2018

Share

KABUL, Afghanistan — The three top officials in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province were killed when their own guards opened fire on them at a security conference Thursday, the deputy provincial governor said, and a Taliban spokesman said the target was Washington’s top general in Afghanistan, Gen. Scott Miller, who escaped without injury, according to NATO.

Three Americans — a service member and two civilian workers — were wounded in the shooting. Their conditions were not immediately known.
Agha Lala Dastageri, Kandahar’s deputy provincial governor, said powerful provincial police chief Abdul Raziq was among the dead, along with Kandahar Gov. Zalmay Wesa, who died of his wounds at a nearby hospital.
Dastageri said provincial intelligence chief Abdul Mohmin also died inside the governor’s sprawling residence where the attack occurred.
Three Americans — a service member and two civilian workers — were wounded in the shooting, said U.S. Col. Knut Peters, a spokesman for NATO troops in Afghanistan. Their conditions were not immediately known.
“Gen. Miller is unhurt,” said Peters. Miller is the commander of U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan.
It was members of Wesa’s elite guard unit who turned their guns on their colleagues during a high-level security meeting ahead of Saturday’s parliamentary elections.

One of the Original Attackers Is Dead

Khalid Pashtun, a member of parliament from the province, said Afghan Security Forces cordoned off the area and a U.S. military helicopter circled overhead as a gun battle that began at 3 p.m. local time raged on for more than one hour.
Peters said initial reports indicate one of the original attackers is dead. He had no further information.
In a telephone interview, the spokesman for the Taliban in Afghanistan’s southern region, Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, said the Taliban carried out the attack. He said Gen. Miller was the target and said Raziq, the governor and the intelligence chief were killed.
Pashtun said an Afghan military corps commander was also among the dead, although he didn’t name him.
An Interior Ministry official speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media said Raziq rarely visited the governor’s residence and was meticulous about his own security.
Razik was a particularly powerful figure in southern Kandahar and a close U.S. ally despite widespread allegations of corruption. He ruled in Kandahar, the former Taliban heartland, with an iron fist and had survived several attempts to kill him, including one last year that resulted in the death of five diplomats from the United Arab Emirates.

Security Has Been Steadily Deteriorating in Afghanistan

Security has been steadily deteriorating in Afghanistan with increasingly brazen attacks being carried out by insurgents and Afghanistan’s security forces have been on high alert ahead of Saturday’s elections.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Taliban have threatened the polls and warned teachers and students not to participate in the vote and not to allow schools to be used as polling centers. The insurgents said in a statement Wednesday that they will target Saturday’s elections, which they view as illegitimate, but that they do not want to harm civilians.
Meanwhile, a NATO convoy was attacked late Wednesday near the Afghan capital, killing two civilians and injuring five Czech troops, Afghan officials and the Czech military said Thursday.
The attack, which took place in the district of Bagram in Parwan province, also wounded three Afghan civilians, said Wahida Shakar, spokeswoman for the provincial governor.
Bagram is about 24 miles from Kabul and is also the home of a sprawling U.S. military base
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.

Three Alliance Service Members Were Hurt in the Bombing

Of the five Czech soldiers, one was seriously injured when their vehicle overturned following the explosion. The soldier underwent surgery and the Czech military said he was not in life-threatening condition.

The attack on the NATO convoy came at the end of a particularly violent day across Afghanistan as tensions are rising ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections on Saturday.
Earlier, NATO spokeswoman Sgt. 1st Class Debra Richardson had said three alliance service members were hurt in the bombing but didn’t provide more details.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said an insurgent suicide bomber rammed his car into the NATO convoy.
The attack on the NATO convoy came at the end of a particularly violent day across Afghanistan as tensions are rising ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections on Saturday.
A Taliban bombing in southern Helmand province killed a candidate running in the elections. The Taliban also attacked checkpoints in the northern Baghlan province, killing six policemen and wounding two others in a four-hour battle. Also, in eastern Maidan Wardak province, a suicide car bomber targeted a military vehicle, killing two Afghan army troops.
In recent months, Afghan troops have come under near-daily attacks. NATO troops, which handed over security to Afghan forces at the end of 2014, mostly train and assist with air power. So far this year, eight U.S. soldiers and three other NATO service members have died in Afghanistan.

DON'T MISS

Caitlin Clark and Iowa Draw Nearly 5 Million Viewers for Second-Round NCAA Win

DON'T MISS

Canadian School Boards Sue Snapchat, TikTok and Meta for Disrupting Students’ Education

DON'T MISS

California Law Enforcement Agencies Obstruct Transparency Efforts in Use-of-Force Cases

DON'T MISS

No Police Charges for Taylor Swift’s Dad Over Paparazzi Incident in Sydney

DON'T MISS

Biden Administration to Lend $1.5B to Restart Michigan Nuclear Power Plant, a First in the US

DON'T MISS

Tonight’s Biden Fundraiser With Obama and Clinton Already Nets a Record $25 Million

DON'T MISS

Ukrainian Navy Says a Third of Russian Warships in the Black Sea Have Been Destroyed or Disabled

DON'T MISS

Former Sen. Joe Lieberman, Democrats’ VP Pick in 2000, Dead at 82

DON'T MISS

Trump Criticizes Judge and His Daughter After Gag Order in Hush-Money Case

DON'T MISS

Police Had About 90 Seconds to Stop Traffic Before Baltimore Bridge Fell. 6 Workers Are Feared Dead

No data was found

Canadian School Boards Sue Snapchat, TikTok and Meta for Disrupting Students’ Education

3 hours ago

California Law Enforcement Agencies Obstruct Transparency Efforts in Use-of-Force Cases

4 hours ago

Fresno County Tackles Animal Overpopulation with New Low-Cost Spay/Neuter Program

4 hours ago

Fallen Crypto Mogul Sam Bankman-Fried Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison

4 hours ago

When Newsom Gives His State of the State, He Should Be Candid About California’s Economy

5 hours ago

No Police Charges for Taylor Swift’s Dad Over Paparazzi Incident in Sydney

5 hours ago

Biden Administration to Lend $1.5B to Restart Michigan Nuclear Power Plant, a First in the US

6 hours ago

Tonight’s Biden Fundraiser With Obama and Clinton Already Nets a Record $25 Million

6 hours ago

Supermom Carmi Is Ready to Be Embraced by Her Forever Family

Animals /

10 hours ago

Ukrainian Navy Says a Third of Russian Warships in the Black Sea Have Been Destroyed or Disabled

17 hours ago

Rockin’ Out or Laughing, the Valley Has Its Pick of Weekend Events

There’ll be plenty of events to choose from this weekend. If you’re in the mood to go to a rock concert or a stand-up comedy sho...

38 mins ago

38 mins ago

Rockin’ Out or Laughing, the Valley Has Its Pick of Weekend Events

3 hours ago

Ex-Correctional Officer at Women’s Prison in California Sentenced for Sexually Abusing Inmates

3 hours ago

Caitlin Clark and Iowa Draw Nearly 5 Million Viewers for Second-Round NCAA Win

3 hours ago

Canadian School Boards Sue Snapchat, TikTok and Meta for Disrupting Students’ Education

4 hours ago

California Law Enforcement Agencies Obstruct Transparency Efforts in Use-of-Force Cases

4 hours ago

Fresno County Tackles Animal Overpopulation with New Low-Cost Spay/Neuter Program

4 hours ago

Fallen Crypto Mogul Sam Bankman-Fried Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison

5 hours ago

When Newsom Gives His State of the State, He Should Be Candid About California’s Economy

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend