Earlier, Afghan Deputy Interior Minister Mohammad Ayoub Salangi said six civilians, including four women, had died, and at least 24 others were wounded in the Kabul blast.
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WASHINGTON, Jan. 21 (APP): The United States will stand side-by-side with Pakistan in its fight against terrorism, the US State Department said on Wednesday after a terrorist attack on a university in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
No one has taken responsibility for the attack, but the Taliban is one of the main suspects.
The attack was eventually claimed by the Taliban, which said in a statement, as reported by Al Jazeera, that “Kabul resident Faridullah conducted the attack…”
Tolo TV is a commercial television station operating in Afghanistan.
Younus Fakoor, a political analyst, described the attack as an attempt to “frighten the media in Afghanistan”.
While initial reports noted the proximity of the attack to the Russian embassy, Radio Free Europe reporter Frud Bezhan reported that Russia’s foreign ministry said the attack was “not aimed against our diplomatic mission” and that Russians were not among the injured.
The Taliban, who are fighting to topple the Western-backed government in Kabul and reimpose strict Islamic law, said they carried out the attack and issued another grim warning.
“The enemy of peace and Afghan people have martyred my colleagues”, Fawad Aman, a well-known TOLO TV anchor, wrote on his Facebook page.
The road links downtown Kabul to the historic war-damaged Darulaman Palace, built by Afghan King Amanullah Khan.
Biden held a trilateral meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Sharif to help the two neighbours co-operate and co-ordinate on counter-terrorism measures, the White House said.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, in a statement sent to reporters shortly after the bombing, also accused Tolo of being a “spy agency” and warned others against indulging in such activities.
The Taliban rejected the reports as fabrications, saying they were examples of propaganda by the “satanic networks”.
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The attacks have coincided with renewed efforts to revive the peace process with the Taliban which broke down in July.
