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| Afghanistan/South Asia |
| Gunman Kills Afghan Intelligence Chief |
| 2004-02-11 |
| EFL KABUL, Afghanistan -- A gunman killed an Afghan intelligence official and then blew himself up in a troubled eastern city Wednesday in the country’s third suicide attack this year. The Taliban claimed it carried out the attack, adding weight to the group’s threat of a suicide campaign that began with the killings of two international peacekeepers in Kabul. The assault also deepens the parallels with the insurgency raging in Iraq. Wednesday’s attack killed the deputy intelligence chief of Khost province, Maj. Mohammed Isa Khan, provincial government spokesman Hayatullah Taniwal said. Now it gets strange. According to Taniwal, the assailant stopped Khan’s car as he drove to his office Wednesday morning in the city of Khost, 90 miles south of Kabul. "When he opened the window to talk to him, (the attacker) pulled a gun out from under his blanket and opened fire," Taniwal said. The man tried to flee, but three of Khan’s bodyguards chased the attacker. "Then he blew himself up," Taniwal said. No one else was injured. Is this guy technically a suicide bomber or an assassin who boomed himself. Was he going for style points? Was he trying to save the bodyguards the trouble of chasing him down? Why not boom the car and kill more people? -snip- On Monday, NATO’s military commander said the number of hardcore Taliban and al-Qaida fighters resisting U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan has dwindled to under 1,000. The insurgency is "running out of energy," U.S. Marine Gen. James L. Jones said after visiting Kabul. However, alliance diplomats said intelligence reports indicate up to 60 potential suicide bombers may have infiltrated Kabul, which had been relatively calm until the two attacks in late January. I hope they prove to be just as confused as this guy. The Taliban must be trying to stretch each suicide bomber over several missions. |
| Posted by:Super Hose |
| #1 Sorry, double post. Please delete. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2004-2-11 9:51:50 PM |