KABUL (Pajhwok): At least 14 people were killed and another more than 40 wounded in a suicide attack targeting a Wolesi Jirga hopeful’s campaign office in Kama district of eastern Nangarhar province on Tuesday.
Attaullah Khogyani, the governor’s spokesman, told Pajhwok Afghan News the blast took place in Sangarsai area of the district at around 1:30pm.
He said the candidate was not present at his office at the time of the blast but elders and youth had gathered at the facility for lunch.
Public Health Director Dr. Najibullah Kamawal said 14 bodies and 41 injured people had been evacuated to the Jalalabad Zonal Hospital from the site of the blast.
He said most of the injured were elderly people and the death toll could increase as some of the wounded were in critical condition.
Shahid Jamal, giving an eyewitness account, said they were sitting under the tent when the powerful occurred and the tent felt on them, which resulted in casualties.
He was unaware of the nature of the blast but confirmed a large number of people had suffered casualties.
Since the launch of the election campaign, it was the first attack on a Wolesi Jirga hopeful.
No group has so far claimed responsibility for the blast.
President Ashraf Ghani condemned the attack and said the people of Afghanistan wanted to elect their representatives through democratic mechanism but the enemy wanted to halt the democratic process through terrorist attacks.
“The terrorists and their supporters through such brutal and wild activities could only further people’s hatred for themselves and will never weaken public trust in democracy and rule of law,” the president said.
Ghani directed security institutions to pay more attention to security of election rallies and asked the masses to cooperate with security forces in foiling the nefarious designs of the terrorists.