U.S. special envoy for the Afghan peace, Zalmay Khalilzad, on Thursday condemned the assassination attempt on Afghanistan’s first vice president, Amrullah Saleh, in Kabul.
He blamed the peace spoilers for the attack, saying with peace talks becoming closer, spoilers try to disrupt the opportunity for it.
“As peace talks near, spoilers are becoming more desperate in their attempt to disrupt this historic opportunity. Today’s attack on @AmrullahSaleh‘s convoy is the latest example. Luckily, he survived. Tragically, this terrorist attack killed and wounded many bystanders,” Ambassador Khalilzad took to Twitter.
“Afghans know a successful peace process is the only antidote to the country’s protracted conflict,” he said, adding that “their widespread yearning for peace will be for the two negotiating teams and their leaders’ to satisfy.”
Saleh’s convoy was the target of a roadside bomb in the capital’s Taimani area.
The Afghan Ministry of Public Health put the toll of casualties to 10 killed and 39 wounded.
No group or individual claimed responsibility for the attack, and the Taliban denied to be behind the attack.
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