Suicide Attack in Afghanistan Kills Taliban Governor in his Office

KABUL: On Thursday, Mohammad Dawood Muzammil was assassinated in his workplace in Mazar-e Sharif, the province's capital. After the militants' restoration to power in 2021, he will be the highest-ranking senior Taliban official to have died.

The Islamic State (IS) group has claimed responsibility for the suicide strike that took the life of the Taliban governor of Afghanistan's Balkh province.

Since then, violence has dramatically diminished, but IS has targeted individuals who support the Taliban. The governor was "martyred in an explosion by the enemies of Islam," according to Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid's tweet.

In his former position as governor of the eastern province of Nangarhar, Muzammil had led the war against IS. Last October, he was relocated to Balkh.

The explosion happened on the second floor of the governor's office on Thursday morning, according to Mohammed Asif Waziri, a spokesman for the Balkh police. IS claimed later on Thursday that one of its soldiers had entered the structure and set off his suicide belt.

The statement also noted that the explosion claimed the lives of some security officers. A day before, eight "rebels and kidnappers" had been slain in Mazar-e Sharif, according to provincial Taliban leaders.

After the Taliban were forced from power in Afghanistan in 2001, the militant Islamic group stormed back to power in August 2021 as a result of the withdrawal of US-led soldiers.

Since then, a number of deadly bombings have primarily targeted mosques and minority communities. Many of these attacks were claimed by the Taliban's fierce rivals in the region, the militant Islamic State (IS-K) group.

Police said numerous people were killed in a shooting that broke out inside a Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall in Hamburg on Thursday night. Sources said that at least six people have died and seven others have been hurt.

According to a statement from Hamburg police, the incident in the northern German city happened around 9 p.m. local time (3 p.m. ET), and there are "one or more unknown" attackers.

Also Read: Multiple Killed In Shooting At Hamburg Jehovah's Witness Center

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