Afghan officials say at least 34 killed in separate suicide bombings

KABUL: Afghan officials said Sunday at least 34 people were killed in two separate suicide bombings that targeted a military base and a provincial chief.

In eastern Ghazni province, 31 soldiers were killed and 24 others wounded when the attacker drove a military humvee full of explosives onto an army commando base before detonating the car bomb, according to an official in Afghanistan's national security council, who spoke anonymously because he was not permitted to speak directly to the media.

The attack was also confirmed by Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian, though he did not provide details on casualties.


In southern Afghanistan, a suicide car bomber targeted the convoy of a provincial council chief in Zubal, killing at least three people and wounding 12 others, including children.

The provincial council chief, Attajan Haqbayat, survived the Sunday attack with minor injuries, though one of his bodyguards was among those killed, said provincial police spokesman Hikmatullah Kochai.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attacks.

The bombings come as Afghan government representatives and the Taliban hold face-to-face talks in Qatar for the first time to end the country's decades-long war.