UPDATE2 -- Suicide bomber kills powerful Afghan police chief at meeting

[News_Editor]

UPDATE2 -- Suicide bomber kills powerful Afghan police chief at meeting

2011-05-29 01:10:44 GMT+7 (ICT)

TALOQAN, AFGHANISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- A suicide bomber dressed as a police officer targeted a meeting at a governor's house in northern Afghanistan on late Saturday afternoon, Afghan and NATO officials said, killing seven people including a powerful police chief.

The attack happened at around 4.45 p.m. local time during a high-profile meeting about the country's security situation at the Governor's Palace in Taloqan, the capital of Takhar province. Photos from the scene showed the entrance of the building was heavily damaged.

Among the fatalities was Pamir police zone commander Gen. Daud Daud, who was a former Deputy Interior Minister for Counter Narcotics, and provincial police chief Brig. Gen. Shah Jehan Noori. Daud was also a former bodyguard of Ahmad Shah Massoud, the man who led the Northern Alliance and was killed in an al-Qaeda suicide bombing two days before the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Daud's death is a blow to security in northern Afghanistan, where the powerful police commander was seen as a stabilizing influence. Some fear his death will have a negative effect on the region's stability, leading to more violence.

The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said two of their service members were also killed in the attack, while several others were injured. The German Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) news agency said the soldiers killed were German.

Rear Admiral Vic Beck, a spokesman for ISAF, said the multinational force will remain 'relentless' in its support to its Afghan partners and to find those responsible for the attack. "ISAF strongly condemns the senseless murder of these Afghans and coalition members who have fought so hard for the people of Afghanistan," Beck said. "Our prayers are with the wounded and the families and friends who are suffering from the loss of their loved ones."

Tim James, a spokesman for the multinational force, said German Major General Markus Kneip was attending the meeting but survived the attack. Kneip is the commander of Regional Command North, one of the six regional commands in Afghanistan within ISAF.

Three other Afghans, in addition to Daud and Massoud, were also killed in the blast. Eight people were injured, including Takhar Governor Abdul Jabbar Taqwa who was seriously injured but is expected to survive.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who is currently on an official visit to Turkmenistan, condemned the attack in 'the strongest terms', calling it a 'barbaric terrorist act'.

"The country's president has ordered security officials to investigate the incident, identify the perpetrators of this despicable act, and punish them," a statement from Karzai's office said, adding that the president hopes for the speedy recovery of those injured.

Meanwhile, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the attack. "General Daud, and the police of chief of Takhar, Shah Jahan Noori, along with several others of the high-ranking puppets and the US-NATO invaders were killed and more 80 were fatally wounded in a martyr attack, carried out by a martyrdom-seeking Mujahid (Muslim fighter) of the Islamic Emirate (Taliban), which was aimed at the Governor office of Takhar province on Saturday at about 4.40 p.m. local time," Mujahid said.

It was not immediately clear how credible the claim was as the Taliban are known to frequently take credit for attacks which were carried out by other insurgent groups. The group also fabricates higher death tolls for propaganda purposes.

In October 2010, neighboring Kunduz governor Mohammad Omar and 19 others were killed when a suicide bomber attacked a crowded mosque in Takhar province. And in late January, a suicide bomber killed Kandahar deputy governor Abdul Latif Ashna on his way to work.

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