At least two people were killed and 21 others injured in four separate explosions in Afghanistan, multiple sources have confirmed. In Jalalabad city, capital of eastern Nangarhar province, two people were killed and 19 others wounded in three blasts targeting Taliban vehicles traveling along roads in Police District (PD) 6 and PD 4 on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.
“The victims and the injured were admitted at the regional provincial hospital in Jalalabad city following explosions in the morning,” the sources told local reporters. They added that most of the victims were Taliban members.
Sources said the blasts were caused by sticky Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). “Explosions in Jalalabad and in Kabul appear to be work of ISIL-K remnants,” a Taliban source said, referring to the Islamic State in Khorasan Province armed group, also known as ISKP (ISIS-K). The senior source added that the Taliban had opened an investigation into the attacks “and culprits will be brought to justice”.
News agencies quoting witnesses and security sources said the fatalities occurred during at least four explosions in the capital of Nangarhar province on Saturday.
No group has claimed responsibility for the blasts so far. Earlier on Saturday, two civilians were wounded in an explosion with an unclear target in PD 13 of Kabul, reported local TV channel Tolo News.
Pictures taken at the site of a blast in Jalalabad showed a green pick-up truck with a white Taliban flag surrounded by debris as armed men looked on.
“In one attack, a Taliban vehicle patrolling in Jalalabad was targeted,” a Taliban official, who asked not to be named, said.
At least two people were also reported wounded in a car bomb blast just before noon in Kabul’s Dasht-e-Barchi neighborhood.
The Taliban stormed to power in mid-August, overthrowing the government as the United States-led international forces completed their withdrawal from Afghanistan. The group has promised to restore security to the violence-racked country.
The chaotic US-led evacuation of foreigners and Afghans who worked for international forces was marred by a devastating bomb attack claimed by ISKP which killed scores of people.