JALALABAD – A suicide bomb blast killed at least two people Saturdayoutside an election commission office in the eastern Afghan city ofJalalabad, officials said.
The latest attack in the war-torn country targeted a protest camp outsidethe building in Nangarhar province, where a group of people were rallyingin support of a candidate disqualified from parliamentary elections due inOctober.
“It killed two people, and four others were wounded,” provincial governorspokesman Attaullah Khogyani told AFP, adding that a suicide attacker wasresponsible for the explosion.
Provincial health director Najib Kamawal confirmed the two deaths.
An eyewitness said the blast was caused by a suicide bomber who detonatedexplosives near a tent full of protesters outside the election commission’soffice in Jalalabad, sending people fleeing as security forces cordoned offthe area.
“It was very big blast and it shook our home,” said witness Mirza Amin, whoadded she lived 50 metres (160 feet) from the site of the explosion.
The blast comes nearly a week after President Ashraf Ghani offered aconditional three-month ceasefire to the Taliban, a move welcomed by theUnited States and NATO after nearly 17 years of war.
The Taliban have yet to provide an official response to the offer. – APP/AFP