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58 Afghanis Killed, 94 Injured in 5 Attacks, Mostly Civilians

December 17, 2019

 

Afghan security forces inspect the site of an attack in a US military air base in Bagram, north of Kabul, Afghanistan, December 11, 2019

 

Roadside Bomb Kills 10 From Same Afghan Family

RFE, December 17, 2019

Based on reporting by AP, Reuters, and AFP

A roadside bomb exploded in the Afghan eastern province of Khost, killing at least 10 civilians traveling in a vehicle, officials say.

Interior Ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said the blast occurred in the district of Ali Sher On the morning of December 17.

The casualties included three children, two women, and five men, Rahimi said.

Talib Mangal, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said they were all members of one family who were traveling to Logar Province to attend a funeral.

In the northern province of Balkh, officials said some 18 people were wounded when explosives attached to a bicycle detonated near a police vehicle.

The blast took place at one of the busiest intersections of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, said Adil Shah Adil, the spokesman for Balkh’s police chief.

He said six traffic police officers were among those wounded, while the rest were civilians.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the two attacks, but officials blamed the Taliban, which controls or holds sway over half the country.

The United Nationals Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has said it is "gravely concerned about the unprecedented levels of violence” harming Afghan civilians.

UNAMA recorded 2,563 deaths and 5,676 injured in the first nine months of this year.

https://www.rferl.org/a/30329856.html

At Least Three Afghan Police Officers Killed In Herat

December 16, 2019, By RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan

At least three Afghan police officers have been killed in an attack in the western city of Herat, officials say.

Provincial police chief General Aminullah Amarkhil said a group of gunmen launched the assault late on December 15.

Two attackers were killed in the ensuing battle and a number of others were wounded, according to Amarkhil.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

Insider Attack Kills At Least Nine Afghan Troops

December 14, 2019, By RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan

With reporting by AP, dpa, and Tolo News

At least one member of an Afghan militia has shot dead nine of his fellow militiamen in what the Interior Ministry is calling an insider attack.

However, local sources and the Taliban said the number of those killed on December 14 was at least 24. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the attack was actually a coordinated militant assault on the checkpoint where the shooting took place.

Details were sketchy and investigators were still looking into the attack in central Ghazni Province's Karabagh district, Defense Ministry deputy spokesman Fawad Aman said. The number of attackers was also not immediately clear.

Afghan militias are under the command of the country's National Security Forces, which suffer near daily Taliban attacks.

The Taliban reportedly controls or holds sway over half the country.

In the past two years, dozens of Afghan security forces have been killed by the Taliban in such attacks in various districts of Ghazni, according to officials.

U.S. and NATO troops have been the main target of insider attacks, but Afghan security forces have also been targeted.

Two U.S. troops were killed by an Afghan soldier in the southern Kandahar Province in July. The perpetrator was wounded and arrested.

Also in Kandahar, two months later, three U.S. military personnel were wounded when a member of the Afghan Civil Order Police opened fire on a military convoy.

U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has held several days of meetings with Taliban representatives in Qatar since December 7. The Taliban maintains a political office in Qatar.

It was his first such direct contact between Khalilzad and the militant group since President Donald Trump halted negotiations three months ago following a deadly wave of Taliban attacks, including a Kabul suicide bombing that killed an American soldier.

Roadside Bomb Kills 10 Civilians In Eastern Afghanistan

December 13, 2019, By RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan

Based on reporting by dpa and AFP

Ten people, including four women and a child, were killed in a roadside bomb explosion in eastern Afghanistan, officials said on December 13.

This occurred in the volatile district of Jaghatu in Ghazni province. All the victims of the blast were civilians, said Aref Noori, a spokesman for the provincial governor, adding that six others were wounded. "Unfortunately, in the explosion, 10 people, including four women and a child, were killed," Noori said. Marwa Amini, deputy spokeswoman for the Afghan Interior Ministry in Kabul, confirmed the blast and death toll. Officials said the bomb was planted to target Afghan security forces, since it detonated some 300 meters from a military base.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but officials blamed the Taliban. Earlier this week, the Taliban launched an attack near Bagram, a major U.S. airbase. This is the second such incident within the past two weeks in the district. In a previous incident, a civilian truck was hit with a roadside bomb that left one dead and one wounded.

Taliban Assault On Key U.S. Base In Afghanistan Kills Two, Wounds Dozens

December 11, 2019, By RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan

With reporting by AP, dpa, Reuters, and AFP

KABUL --

Taliban militants have attacked a medical facility near the main U.S. military base in Afghanistan, officials say, killing at least two Afghan civilians and wounding more than 70 other people, including five Georgian soldiers. The December 11 attack, which included at least one suicide car bombing, comes as the United States last week resumed talks with the Taliban -- three months after President Donald Trump abruptly halted negotiations to end the 18-year war.

"A 30-minute clash also happened between the attackers, who obviously wanted to enter [Bagram Airfield], and foreign forces," said Wahida Shahkar, a spokeswoman for the governor of Parwan Province, where the base is located.

A spokesman for NATO's Resolute Support mission later said that Taliban fighters who barricaded themselves inside the medical facility building after an "unsuccessful attempt to breach" Bagram Airfield were killed in a series of air strikes. The facility, located outside the air base located some 50 kilometers north of Kabul, was "under renovation to provide increased medical care for local Afghans," the spokesman said. He also said that "some Coalition service members were evaluated for minor injuries following the initial attack, but were later released." The Georgian Defense Ministry confirmed that five of its soldiers were slightly injured. A spokesman for the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahid, claimed responsibility for the attack, which comes as U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad reportedly met with Taliban officials on December 7 in Qatar, the scene of previous negotiations abruptly called off three months ago by Trump.

The restart follows Trump's surprise Thanksgiving visit to see U.S. troops in Afghanistan on November 28, when he voiced hope that "the Taliban wants to make a deal and we are meeting with them."

In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemned the latest attack "in the strongest possible terms," adding: "This is precisely the kind of activity that we're working to reduce." "The people of Afghanistan deserve an end to these senseless acts of violence," he told reporters. 

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Afghan bomber hits medical facility near US base, 2 killed

By RAHMAT GUL and TAMEEM AKHGAR

 Associated Press December 11, 2019,

KABUL, Afghanistan --

A powerful suicide bombing targeted an under-construction medical facility Wednesday near Bagram Air Base, the main American base north of Afghanistan's capital, the U.S. military and Afghan officials said. Two civilians were killed and more than 70 people wounded.

The Taliban later claimed responsibility for the attack and Afghan officials said all the insurgents were killed. The Bagram airfield was not in danger, said Col. Sonny Leggett.

The facility is being rebuilt to help the Afghan people who live in the area, the U.S. military said.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement that at least four dozen civilians were killed in this attack, but Afghan officials disputed that number. There was no immediate explanation for the discrepancy.

Bagram District Gov. Abdul Shokor Qodusi said the facility was attacked by six Taliban insurgents following the suicide bombing. He said the facility was not under construction as Pompeo said but had been built years ago by Koreans and has been closed since 2015.

“The attacks seriously damaged a hospital that was being rebuilt for the Afghan people," Pompeo said in his statement. “This is precisely the kind of activity that we’re working to reduce through the efforts that we’re undertaking. The people of Afghanistan deserve an end to these senseless acts of violence."

The Taliban control or hold sway over nearly half of Afghanis tan, staging regular attacks that target foreign and Afghan forces, as well as Kabul government officials, but also kill scores of civilians.

Outside the sprawling base, several homes, mostly belonging to the poor, were destroyed. A large mosque in the area was also badly damaged.

Shortly after the bombing, Afghan troops, special forces and intelligence officers cordoned off the perimeter of the base with armored personnel carriers. Heavily armed soldiers kept residents far from the base gates.

Within minutes of the suicide bombing, U.S. fighter aircraft bombed the area, according to witnesses.

Earlier reports suggested a U.S. military convoy might have been the target of Wednesday's attack.

Dr. Abdul Qasim Sangin, a physician who heads the main hospital in the province, said the hospital near the perimeter of the base was on fire. It wasn't immediately clear if any foreigners were inside the hospital.

Gen. Mahfooz Walizada, police chief of Parwan province, where the base is located, confirmed the attack but offered no details on casualties.

Sangin said his hospital received six wounded, all Afghans. Five were in stable condition and one was critical, he said. Scores more were treated and released by medics at the scene. Most were suffering cuts and bruises from flying glass and debris.

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/us-military-convoy-afghanistan-targeted-car-bomb-67643582

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