2 ANA officers, 1 civilian killed as attacks continue in Kabul

KABUL (Tolo News): Three people were killed and one more was wounded in two separate security incidents in Kabul, according to security sources. In the first incident, at least two Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers were killed in the Kot-e-Sangi area of PD5 in Kabul city, a security source told TOLOnews.

The two ANA officers Sayed Abu Talib Sadat and Nawab Haidari belonged to 209 Shaheen Army Corps. Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian blamed the Taliban for the assassination of the ANA soldiers. The second incident happened in PD6 and one civilian was killed and two others were wounded in an IED blast that targeted a vehicle in PD6 of Kabul city.

“Only God knows the pain I feel. Those can feel my pain who have lost their sons,” said father of Nawab Haidari. “What was his fault,” asked Nawab’s mother, Zar Afshan. “What should I do now with my children without him,” said Nawab’s widow Zakia.

“I just narrowly escaped the explosion. We want security,” said an eyewitness of the IED blast in PD6 Abdul Khaliq. The recent spate of targeted killings comes three months after Afghanistan’s First Vice President Amrullah Saleh took the charge of Kabul security in a move to fix the fragile security situation in the nation’s most congested city. Although, Saleh’s new security measures for Kabul have met with mixed reaction among the ordinary Afghans, but, President Ashraf Ghani defended Saleh’s security measures.

“We all see the 6:30 meetings of the frist vice president… There is a need for a robust management,” said Ghani, applausing Saleh’s measures. “There are targeted killings. Each day people are being martyred,” said Aman, a resident of Kabul. “How long should we be killed? We don’t want sympathy. We want security,” said Mariam, a civil society activist in Kabul.

In the military front, at least eight members of the Afghan forces were killed in the latest Taliban attacks in Nimroz and Baghlan province. Violence has dramatically increased in Afghanistan in recent months. The killings of prominent figures among them journalists and civil society activists in Kabul have taken place despite peace talks between the Afghan Republic and the Taliban in Doha.