Kabule,Afghanistan (RPRN) 01/04/09-Officials say the assault Wednesday began with a bombing outside the government building. Witnesses say after the explosion, three gunmen in military-style uniforms stormed the office and started firing. At least one of the attackers was said to have blown himself up.
(left-imageAn Afghan youth comforts his mother near the site of suicide attack in Kandahar province south of Kabul, Afghanistan, 01 Apr 2009)
A provincial council member who was in the building at the time of the attack said one council member had been wounded.
Militant attacks in Afghanistan have grown increasingly deadly, as foreign and Afghan forces fight to defeat the growing Taliban insurgency.
Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry said Wednesday Afghan and U.S.-led coalition forces killed at least 30 militants Tuesday in southern Helmand province. The ministry said the joint operation left 20 other militants wounded.
The announcement came just one day after the ministry said 30 militants died during a joint operation in the neighboring province of Uruzgan.
The U.S. is sending more troops to Afghanistan this year in an attempt to defeat the increasingly bloody insurgency.“>“>
At a conference on Afghanistan in The Hague on Tuesday, representatives of more than 80 countries and institutions stressed the importance of international and regional cooperation to rebuild the war-torn nation. They also agreed to work jointly to improve Afghanistan’s security, economic and political development.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.