The perpetrator apparently came with the motorcycle: An attacker has committed a suicide attack in the Afghan provincial capital Charikar. The attack hit a campaign event of President Ashraf Ghani. According to the hospital, at least 24 people were killed in the explosion. Head of state Ghani, who promotes his re-election at the end of September, remained unhurt, according to local officials.
According to the Interior Ministry, the offender fired his explosive device at the first checkpoint in front of the meeting place. Among the victims are apparently also children. However, the situation was confusing, the number of victims could continue to increase, said the head of the local hospital. Media also report a second explosion near the US embassy in the center of the capital, Kabul.
Omar Sobhani / Reuters
Afghan security authorities at the second scene in Kabul
So far no one committed to the attacks. However, the radical Islamic Taliban called for a boycott of Afghanistan's presidential election in early August and threatened to use force. The population should stay away from electoral events in order not to become a potential target, it said. Footage from the Ghani event shows that thousands of people gathered to see the president.
The presidential election in Afghanistan is scheduled for 28 September. Already the first day of the election campaign had been overshadowed by a heavy attack at the end of July. More than 20 people were killed in an attack on the office of vice presidential candidate Amrullah Saleh in Kabul, the capital. Due to the poor security situation, the implementation of the election in many areas is at risk.