World Brief
The Afghan interior minister escaped an assassination attempt on Sunday after his security guards shot and killed a would-be suicide bomber who was targeting him, according to reports.
“I can confirm a failed assassination attempt on the minister, a suicide bomber was involved, no casualties,” Siddiq Siddiqui, a spokesperson for Interior Minister Bismullah Khan, told AFP.
The assailant ran toward Khan’s convoy in Sayed Khail, a district in Parvan Province but was shot by bodyguards before he could detonate himself, Siddiqui said.
The attempt comes after several high-profile Afghani officials were killed earlier this year, including former President Burhanuddin Rabbani, the country’s chief negotiator. Current President Hamid Karzai’s brother, Ahmed Wali Karzai, a top power broker in the country, was also assassinated.
Siddiqui said the attacker was in his early 20s and died from gunshot wounds. He was not able to detonate the explosives strapped to him.
Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited both Afghanistan and Pakistan, delivering her strongest statements yet to try and persuade Islamabad to deal with Taliban and Haqqani network militants hiding in North Waziristan Province.
“I can confirm a failed assassination attempt on the minister, a suicide bomber was involved, no casualties,” Siddiq Siddiqui, a spokesperson for Interior Minister Bismullah Khan, told AFP.
The assailant ran toward Khan’s convoy in Sayed Khail, a district in Parvan Province but was shot by bodyguards before he could detonate himself, Siddiqui said.
The attempt comes after several high-profile Afghani officials were killed earlier this year, including former President Burhanuddin Rabbani, the country’s chief negotiator. Current President Hamid Karzai’s brother, Ahmed Wali Karzai, a top power broker in the country, was also assassinated.
Siddiqui said the attacker was in his early 20s and died from gunshot wounds. He was not able to detonate the explosives strapped to him.
Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited both Afghanistan and Pakistan, delivering her strongest statements yet to try and persuade Islamabad to deal with Taliban and Haqqani network militants hiding in North Waziristan Province.
