Amrullah Saleh: At least ten people were killed in an attack on the convoy of the Afghan Vice President in Kabul

 

A bomb blast near the Afghan capital, Kabul, has killed at least 10 people and injured dozens more, officials say. According to the BBC's Sikandar Kirmani, footage broadcast on Afghan TV showed black smoke rising from the scene. The target was Amrullah Saleh's convoy, which was passing by at the time. In a statement issued after the attack, the Afghan vice president said he had a burn on one hand. Saleh, who has spoken out against the Taliban, vowed to continue his political work in the same message. Although the Taliban has said it had nothing to do with the attack, observers say it comes at a time when the Afghan government and the Taliban are finally close to resuming talks. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

In a video message released about two hours after the attack, Amrullah Saleh said several of his bodyguards were injured in the incident and had been taken to the National Directorate of Security Hospital. "My son Ibadullah Jan and I were not harmed, but my face and arm were injured," he said. Had to A spokesman for the Afghan Interior Ministry said 10 civilians, including Amrullah Saleh's bodyguards, were killed and nine wounded in the attack. Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani has condemned the attack and called for a full investigation into the incident, while another Afghan vice president, Sarwar Danish, has also condemned the attack, saying it comes at a time when peace talks between the Taliban and the government are underway. The terrorist attack on the Vice President is a clear violation of peace talks. Pakistan's Foreign Office and Pakistani lawmaker Mohsin Dawar also condemned the attack in their tweets. Speaking on the anniversary of the death of Northern Alliance commander Ahmad Shah Massoud on Tuesday, Amrullah Saleh said, "Peace talks do not mean that the Afghan government or the Taliban will surrender to each other."

Saleh also spoke about the Durand Line in a TV interview last Sunday.

He has previously served as Afghanistan's interior minister and director-general of national security. Saleh's office was also attacked on July 5. At the time, he was elected Afghanistan's first vice president