Blast in Afghanistan's Balkh results in multiple deaths, injuries

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
11 Mar 2023 11:27

Al Mayadeen correspondent says the bombing targeted a conference of a number of Taliban officials and scholars in the Balkh Province.

A photo from the scene of the Balkh blast showing multiple microphones belonging to different media outlets on the floor (Social media)

A blast hit the capital of Afghanistan's northern Balkh province on Saturday, police confirmed, killing at least 1 person and wounding 8, including children, according to the Interior Ministry, a couple of days after an explosion claimed by Islamic State Khorasan (IS-K) killed the province's governor.

Earlier, Mohamad Asif Waziri, Balkh's police spokesperson, said that "a blast has taken placed in the second police district of Balkh."

#BREAKING
An explosion occurred at a cultural center in Mazar-i-Sharif city, Balkh province, where a ceremony was held to honor local journalists.

Nearly 30 wounded
The number of the casualties might increase as the figures are from one hospital in the northern city. pic.twitter.com/gvFiQklWxQ
— Eagle Eye PSF (@zarrar_11PSF) March 11, 2023

Al Mayadeen correspondent reported that several were dead and others were injured in a bombing that targeted a conference of a number of Taliban officials and scholars in the province.

A journalist based in Balkh, Mohammad Fardin Nowrozi, told Reuters that he and several other journalists were injured in the explosion, without providing further details.

The cause of the blast was not immediately clear.

Taliban authorities were already investigating the explosion that killed the provincial governor, Mawlawi Mohammad Dawood Muzamil, and two others at his office on Thursday.

The governor of Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar will temporarily run Balkh, his Spokesperson Haji Zaid told Reuters until Supreme Spiritual Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada selects a new governor for the northern province, an important trade hub with Central Asia.