Afghanistan
Taliban governor killed in explosion
On Thursday, a Taliban leader in northern Afghanistan lost his life in the explosion at his office.
Published
Balkh University in northern Afghanistan.
AFP/Photo d’illustration
A senior Taliban official, the governor of Balkh province in northern Afghanistan, known for his fight once morest jihadists from the Islamic State (IS) group, was killed Thursday in an explosion in his office. Mohammad Dawood Muzammil is one of the most senior Taliban leaders to be killed in such circumstances since they returned to power in August 2021.
His death comes a day following he met with senior government officials who came to Balkh to discuss a major irrigation project in northern Afghanistan, according to a government statement.
IS, the government’s biggest challenge
Violence in Afghanistan decreased significantly following the Taliban returned to power, but the situation has deteriorated since last year, with IS claiming responsibility for several deadly attacks. “Two people, including Mohammad Dawood Muzammil, the governor of Balkh, were killed in an explosion this morning (Thursday) at 9 a.m.,” Balkh police spokesman Asif Waziri told AFP. “The nature of the explosion is not known, but it occurred on the second floor of the governor’s office,” he added.
The governor was killed in an explosion caused “by the enemies of Islam”, government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid also tweeted. Mohammad Dawood Muzammil was initially appointed governor of the eastern province of Nangarhar following the Taliban took power. In Nangarhar, he led the fight once morest IS, before being appointed governor of Balkh last year.
The return to power of the Taliban ended two decades of war once morest NATO forces and the United States, leading to a significant reduction in violence. But since last year, IS has become the biggest challenge for the government.
Precedents
On January 11, a suicide attack in front of the entrance to the Foreign Ministry in Kabul, claimed by IS, left ten dead and 53 injured, according to the latest estimate made by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan ( Mana). An AFP employee on site saw a man with a Kalashnikov over his shoulder and carrying a bag blow himself up.
Less than a month earlier, on December 12, an attack also claimed by IS had been perpetrated by armed men, some of whom had been killed, once morest a hotel in the Afghan capital housing Chinese businessmen. Five Chinese citizens were injured in the attack. Some customers had jumped out of the windows of the establishment to escape the fire which had broken out during the attack.
In September, an influential imam working in one of the largest mosques in Herat, in the west of the country, was killed in a huge explosion in which 17 other people were also killed. In early August, another Taliban cleric and his brother were killed in a suicide bombing at a Koranic school in Kabul, claimed by IS. This cleric, Rahimullah Haqqani, was particularly known for his violent indictments once morest IS.
(AFP)
