Off the wire
Indian stocks close higher  • IS militants bomb 9 of Saddam Hussein's palaces in Tikrit  • Weather information for Asia-Pacific cities  • Israeli DM: Israel gets message of restraint from Hezbollah  • 3 scientists win Japan Prize in river engineering, gene therapy  • )Major news items in leading German newspapers  • President Xi stresses diplomacy by military exchanges  • China eyes four to five medals at 2015 IAAF World Championships  • Interview: Sri Lanka's economy in transition to become globally competitive: official  • China lifts overseas online shopping transaction limit  
You are here:   Home

1st LD Writethru: Two killed in suicide bombing in east Afghanistan

Xinhua, January 29, 2015 Adjust font size:

At least two people were killed and 20 others wounded after a suicide attack rocked a funeral ceremony in Afghanistan's eastern province of Laghman on Thursday, a security source said.

"A funeral service was underway for a police officer named Sayyeda Jan, who was killed along with three members of his family earlier on Thursday morning. The blast caused two people killed and 20 others wounded" the source told Xinhua.

The attack took place at around 3:30 p.m. local time in Pahlawan Baba in the provincial capital of Mehtarlam.

"The bomber was also killed on the spot and security forces detained a would-be suicide bomber at the scene shortly after the blast. He is in security forces' custody now," the source added.

Unofficial sources claimed that seven people were killed, and that a senior provincial criminal investigation department police official was among the dead.

The death toll may rise as some wounded remained in critical condition, the source added.

No group has claimed responsibility yet for the attack, but the Taliban insurgent group routinely claims responsibility for such attacks.

The Taliban has been waging an insurgency since its regime was toppled by a U.S-led invasion in late 2001.

The militant group has intensified an offensive with a string of bombings and attacks over the past couple of months as the Afghan National Security Forces assumed the full security responsibility from NATO-led troops after a four-year security transition process ended on Dec. 31. Endi