Deadly Taliban attack underscores threat to disrupt Afghan elections
A suicide attack on a police station in the eastern city of Jalalabad left at least 10 police officers dead. A presidential election is due on April 5.
A suicide attack on a police station in the eastern city of Jalalabad left at least 10 police officers dead. A presidential election is due on April 5.
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The Taliban's pledge to disrupt Afghan elections next month appears to be holding strong with today's attack on a police compound in Jalalabad, one of the country's largest cities.聽
The multipronged attack started when聽an explosives-laden car was driven through the compound gate. Several individual suicide bombers followed, kicking off a battle that lasted three hours, The New York Times reports. At least 10 police officers were killed, including the district police chief.聽
The Taliban claimed responsibility, as they did for a fatal attack in Faryab Province on March 18. Their threats and assaults have turned the election campaign into a test of nerves for the candidates, who have continued to hold rallies and other events.聽Assuming it proceeds as planned, the April 5 presidential poll would be Afghanistan's first democratic transition of power. Voters are also due to elect provincial councils.聽
The Taliban wrote on Twitter that after the police compound, they moved on to other targets 鈥撀爄ncluding the provincial governor's office, according to Stars and Stripes.
The March 18 attack in Faryab Province killed at least 16 people, mostly civilians, at a bazaar. Referring to incident, Naqibullah Fayeq, a member of parliament from Faryab Province, told The New York Times that 鈥淲e believe today鈥檚 bombing was part of efforts to scare people.聽Today鈥檚 attack had only election motives.鈥�
鈥淭oday鈥檚 killings will never stop the people of Faryab from casting their votes,鈥� Mr. Fayeq continued. 鈥淧eople understand that the only way to free themselves from this government is the election.鈥�
The Taliban gave notice on March 10聽of their intent to disrupt national elections:
They are going to great lengths to discourage voters from going to the polls on April 5. In a tweet from their English-language account, they announced another attack targeting the election:
Nangarhar Province includes Jalalabad. The polling station attack could not be verified.聽
The stakes are high for the presidential election, and the United States is watching the effort closely. A key issue for the US is President Hamid Karzai's refusal to sign an agreement that would allow US and NATO troops to remain in Afghanistan beyond the end of 2014. The US hopes that whoever is elected will take that step, which the US considers essential to maintaining at least the level of stability the US and US-supported Afghan National Army have managed to bring.
Last month, the top US commander in Afghanistan spelled out the importance of the bilateral security agreement 鈥� and the election. The New York Times reports:
A senior official from Pakistan, which shares a lengthy border with Afghanistan, warned of "mayhem" if US troops do not remain past 2014, 海角大神 reports.聽