LASHKARGAH (Pajhwok): Eight civilians, including a Wolesi Jirga candidate, were killed and another 12 wounded when a suicide bombing ripped through an election campaign rally in the capital of southern Helmand province on Tuesday afternoon, an official said.
A security official, wishing anonymity, told Pajhwok Afghan News the explosion happened in limits of 1st police district in Lashkargah City, the provincial capital at 2:30pm.
Provincial police spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul RazeqYaqoobi told Pajhwok that seven people were killed and a dozen more wounded in the suicide bombing.
Mohammad Yaseen Khan, the governor’s spokesman, said a Wolesi Jirga candidate, Saleh Mohammad Achakzai, was among eight civilians killed and 11 others wounded in the suicide attack.
President Ashraf Ghani strongly condemned the suicide attack and said: “The Afghans, who strongly believe in democracy and in their bright future, will not allow terrorists and their supporters to stop democracy in the country.”
He directed security and defense officials to pay serious attention to the election campaign process and ensure candidates’ security.
An official at the Emergency hospital in Lashkargah confirmed receiving eight dead bodies and 11 wounded people from the scene.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, the latest in a series of such attacks on election candidates.