Nine killed in suicide attack on Indian consulate in Afghanistan.

Nine killed in suicide attack on Indian consulate in Afghanistan.

Security officials conduct investigation at the
 scene of suicide bomb attacks in Jalalabad,
 August 3, 2013. — Photo by AP

JALALABAD | 03 Aug 2013 :: Suicide bombers targeted the Indian consulate in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad on Saturday, detonating an explosives-packed car and killing nine civilians, including seven children in a nearby mosque.

A spokesman for the Taliban militant group immediately denied responsibility for the blast that erupted outside the Indian mission and left the mosque, private houses, tailors and other shops in ruins.

“A car containing explosives hit a barrier near the consulate and detonated,” Ahmadzia Abdulzai, spokesman for Nangarhar province, of which Jalalabad is the capital, told AFP. “There were three suicide bombers in the car.”

Nangarhar police chief Sharif Amin said that the consulate was the intended target of the attack, which created a large crater in the road as survivors wearing blood-stained clothing ran for cover.

“Among the civilians killed were seven children inside the mosque,” Amin said.

The interior ministry condemned the bombing as “heinous” and said nine people had died in total, with 21 other civilians wounded.

Syed Akbaruddin, a spokesman for the Indian foreign ministry in New Delhi, said that no officials were injured in the attack – the first major strike in Afghanistan during the holy month of Ramazan that started on July 10.India strongly condemned a deadly suicide bomb assault, vowing the raid would not stop it from helping rebuild the war-torn nation.

The suicide attacks “must be condemned in the strongest possible terms”, India’s foreign ministry said in a statement, adding they were a reminder of the threat posed to Afghanistan by “terrorism”.(Courtesy:Dawn)Read More>>>