Afghan Lawmaker Survives Deadly Car Bombing In Kabul

The explosion occurred on December 20 while an Afghan lawmaker's convoy was passing through an intersection in Kabul's Khushal Khan neighborhood.

Afghan authorities say a car bombing targeting a member of parliament killed at least nine people in the capital, Kabul.

Interior Minister Massoud Andarabi told reporters on December 20 that lawmaker Khan Mohammad Wardak was among 20 people wounded in the attack.

Andarabi said the lawmaker was in "good condition."

The interior minister warned that the death toll could rise, adding that all the casualties were civilians.

The explosion occurred while the lawmaker's convoy was passing through an intersection in the Khushal Khan neighborhood.

The blast set surrounding civilian vehicles on fire, and also damaged nearby buildings and shops.

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Afghan Lawmaker Survives Fatal Car Bombing

Television footage showed at least three cars on fire, with billowing plumes of thick black smoke.

"The terrorists have carried out a terrorist attack in Kabul city,” said Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said.

"The enemies of Afghanistan carried out a terrorist attack on Khan Mohammad Wardak," President Ashraf Ghani said in a statement condemning the bombing. "Terrorist attacks on civilian targets and facilities will endanger the opportunity for peace."

No group claimed responsibility for the attack, although officials have blamed similar incidents in the past on the Taliban.

Violence in Afghanistan has skyrocketed in recent months even as the Taliban and Afghan government negotiators try to hammer out a peace deal that could put an end to decades of war.

Kabul Car Bomb Explosion Kills Nine


The peace talks in the Gulf state of Qatar were suspended earlier this month, three months after they began. They are expected to resume in January.

There have been regular clashes in various parts of the country and bomb and rocket attacks in Kabul.

On December 15, a bomb blast and a shooting attack in Kabul killed at least three people, including a deputy provincial governor.

The Interior Ministry said on December 19 that Taliban militants have killed at least 487 civilians and wounded nearly 1,050 in the past three months.

The ministry said the group had conducted 35 suicide bombings and detonated 507 improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

The Taliban rejected the figures as government propaganda.

With reporting by AP, AFP, and Tolo News