UN Building in Southern Afghanistan Under Attack
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Site of the UN building where the bomb attack took place. |
KABUL,
Aug 3 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - A grenade exploded in the
grounds of a United Nations compound in southern Afghanistan. This was
the first attack against UN staff since the world body resumed its
operations in the country late last year, a spokesman said Saturday,
August 3, 2002.
No
one was injured in the attack Thursday, August 1, at the local
headquarters of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in
Kandahar city, David Singh told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"A
grenade was lobbed over the wall into the grounds of the FAO building
in Kandahar," Singh said.
"The
grenade landed on the lawn and the force of the explosion broke a few
windows. No one was injured.
"It
would be the first attack in Afghanistan since we came back."
The
two suspected attackers first made off on a motorbike, which they were
forced to abandon and then escaped into a field where pursuing
security officials lost track of them.
"We
have no information as to who they are. The incident is being
investigated," said the UN spokesman.
Additional
security guards would now be posted outside all UN buildings in
Kandahar after discussions with local authorities, he added.
Kandahar
was the stronghold of the former Taliban regime until it was ousted
late last year after a U.S.-led bombing campaign.
And
in a separate related development, thousands of protesters gathered
Friday, August 2, for a fourth day of demonstrations in one of the
most restive regions of Afghanistan, underlining the tensions that
threaten the country's security, reported The Turkish Daily News.
The
demonstrations in the Khost region of Paktia province and in
neighboring Nangarhar province drew an estimated 9,000 people, many of
them beating drums and dancing, both traditional parts of Afghan
protests.
The
demonstrators protested several grievances against the interim
government of President Hamid Karzai.
Among
the demands were that governors in southern Afghanistan be appointed
in consultation with Bacha Khan Zadran, a regional warlord, his
brother Kamal Khan Zadran said. If the demands were not met within 24
hours, protesters would block the road between Khost and the capital
Kabul, he added, according to the Turkish paper.
Bacha
Khan Zadran's fighters attacked the Paktia capital of Gardez in
January, 2002, in an unsuccessful attempt to install him as the
province's governor, and rocketed the city again in April.
The
demonstrators also demanded that arrests be made in the July 1
assassination of Vice President Abdul Qadir, who was also the governor
of Nangarhar.
Nangarhar
and Paktia provinces, east of Kabul along the border with Pakistan,
are among Afghanistan's least secure regions and U.S. troops conduct
frequent weapons sweeps and patrols looking for holdouts of the
Taliban and al-Qaeda
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