Bomb survivor claims Pakistan plot

A senior Afghan politician has blamed a failed attack on his life on the Pakistan secret intelligence service.

The suicide attack in Kabul killed at least four people

On Sunday, a suicide car bomb exploded into the convoy of Sebghatullah Mujadidi, a politician leading reconciliation efforts with the Taliban militia.

 

Four people were killed in the attack and five wounded, officials said.

 

Mujadidi accused Pakistan‘s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency of trying to kill him.

 

He said that Afghanistan had information that six people had entered the country to assassinate him, but did not offer any proof.

 

“We have got information that ISI of Pakistan has launched a plan to kill me,” Mujadidi told a news conference hours after the attack, which police said killed the two attackers and two bystanders.

 

“What is my fault? My fault is that I am working for the peace and prosperity of Afghanistan. [Pervez] Musharraf [the Pakistani president] and ISI of Pakistan do not want Afghanistan to be safe and secure.”

 

Mujadidi, a former president who is also head of the upper house of the Afghan parliament, said he suffered burns to his hands and face from the blast when a station wagon exploded close to his vehicle on a Kabul street.

 

Pakistan denial

 

Islamabad dismissed Mujadidi’s allegations.

 

Tasnim Aslam, a spokeswoman for Pakistan‘s Foreign Ministry, said: “Pakistan rejects the baseless allegations.”

 

Mujadidi’s allegation of a Pakistani plot will enflame a row that broke earlier this month after Kabul revealed that it had shared intelligence with Islamabad that Mullah Omar – the Taliban leader – was hiding in Pakistan, and terrorist training camps on its soil were churning out suicide attackers.

 

Pakistan dismissed the intelligence as outdated and criticised Afghanistan for publicising it.

 

Afghanistan has been rocked by a series of suicide attacks directed at foreign troops and government officials in recent months. Civilians have borne the brunt of the attacks.

 

The Taliban, which have been waging an insurgency against Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president, and his government since their overthrow by US-led forces in late 2001, have taken responsibility for most of the attacks.

Source: News Agencies