Ten dead in Afghan bazaar blast

Published June 25, 2011

Police have launched an investigation into the blast, which local officials blamed on the Taliban. — Photo by Reuters

KABUL: Ten people were killed and 24 others wounded when a bicycle bomb went off in a busy bazaar in northern Afghanistan, officials said Saturday, updating an earlier toll.

The blast happened in Khan Abad district, Kunduz province, at around 6:00 pm Friday. Local officials initially said six people were killed and 22 others were wounded.

But in a fresh statement Saturday, the Afghan interior ministry said: “Ten people were killed including a police soldier and 24 others were wounded including 18 men, five women and a police member.”

The explosives were planted in a bicycle near an ice-cream shop, the statement added.

Police have launched an investigation into the blast, which local officials blamed on the Taliban.

Militants have frequently targeted the Afghan police and other government employees in their near decade-long insurgency.

But civilians are the biggest casualties in the war, with 2,777 killed last year, according to the United Nations.

The north of Afghanistan is usually more stable than the volatile south and east but has seen an upsurge of violence in recent times.

Opinion

Editorial

The long wait
Updated 23 Feb, 2025

The long wait

Pakistan’s fundamental problem is that two of its most important leaders still cannot get over themselves.
Defending freedom
23 Feb, 2025

Defending freedom

THERE was no other choice. Despite assurances of consultations with key stakeholders, the government passed the Peca...
Anti-Muslim crimes
23 Feb, 2025

Anti-Muslim crimes

THE surge in Islamophobic assaults in the UK, as reported by the anti-hate crime charity Tell MAMA, is a stark...
Judiciary in the dock
Updated 22 Feb, 2025

Judiciary in the dock

Recent developments in SC and IHC certainly seem to have lent credibility to perception that judges perceived as a 'threat’ are being sidelined.
Paying taxes
22 Feb, 2025

Paying taxes

FINANCE Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb’s ‘hard talk’ at a retail business conference on Thursday was long ...
Rules for thee
22 Feb, 2025

Rules for thee

IT was a year ago when, in the tumultuous aftermath of the 2024 elections, the state banned X. Today, it remains...