Terrorists Kill 17 in Mosque; U.S. Treats Injured Afghans
(AFPS) Seventeen people were killed when a suicide bomber reportedly
linked to al Qaeda and the Taliban blew himself up in the Abdul
Rub Akhundzadar Mosque in Kandahar province.
The attack
occurred during a religious ceremony mourning the death of Mullah
Abdul Fiyaz, a respected cleric and supporter of the people of
Afghanistan, U.S. officials reported.
Among the
dead was the police chief of the Afghan capital of Kabul. The
governor of Kandahar and the Afghan National Police are investigating
the incident, officials said.
"The
coalition abhors this atrocious act of violence upon innocent
civilians and a mosque," said U.S. Army Col. Jim Yonts, Combined
Forces Command Afghanistan public affairs officer. "Tragic
events such as this only solidify our resolve that we must eradicate
terrorism now. The future of Afghanistan depends on it.
"The
coalition offers our condolences to the family and friends of
Mullah Fiyaz and to the families of those injured or killed in
the explosion," Yonts said. "The coalition stands ready
to provide civic assistance to the government of Afghanistan and
the governor of Kandahar." In other news from Afghanistan,
coalition forces on May 31 medically evacuated a 5-year-old girl
with a compound fracture in her right arm and a 20-year-old male
land-mine victim to medical facilities for treatment.
The young
man suffered amputation of both legs below the knees when a land
mine detonated near Deh Rahwod in Uruzgan province. He was evacuated
to a medical facility in Tarin Kowt for the night, where he was
stabilized. He was transferred to Bagram Air Base in Parvan province,
about 27 miles north of Kabul, for further treatment.
The girl's
arm was broken when she fell out of a moving truck near Forward
Operating Base Naray in Kunar province. She was evacuated for
treatment at Bagram Air Base, where she was reported to be in
stable condition.
(Source:
CENTCOM)