Taliban attack in the capital Kabul
The latest Taliban attack took place in a residential area of Kabul the capital. It was against the wall of the Green village where a number of international groups are based. At least 16 people were killed and 119 wounded.
A recent article reports: “Interior ministry spokesperson Nasrat Rahimi said the blast was caused by a tractor packed with explosives that had been parked alongside a wall by Green Village, a large compound that houses aid agencies and international organizations.”
Taliban defend the attack
The Taliban said the attack was designed to ensure that they were in a position of strength during the peace negotiations. Afghan officials said that 400 foreign nationals had been rescued from the Green Village. In the last three days, the Taliban have carried out three attacks. The Taliban also launched attacks last weekend on many fronts on Kunduz in the north and Pul-e-Khumri the capital of Baghlan province.
Although there is said to be a peace agreement in principle neither US President Trump nor the Taliban’s Shura council have yet indicated they approve it and the Afghan government has expressed concerns about it.
Locals want foreigners out of the area
Rather than blaming the Taliban, locals in the residential neighborhood protested the presence of the Green Village as it made them a target of Taliban attacks. The protesters demanded that the foreigners move away from their area. An attack with a truck bomb in January caused more than 100 casualties.
A recent article reports on the protests: “Locals set tires on fire, sending plumes of thick, acrid smoke into the morning sky, and closed off a main road next to the scene of the attack. The sound of gunfire could be heard on a live TV broadcast Monday morning. “We want these foreigners to move out of our neighborhood,” resident Abdul Jamil told AFP. “This is not the first time we suffer because of them … We don’t want them here anymore.””
