Gunmen Attack Ex-Taliban Official’s Home In Kabul

December 24, 2016

Two unidentified gunmen on a motorbike opened fire at the house of a former Taliban leader in the Afghan capital, Kabul, killing at least one person, Afghan officials and media said on December 24.

Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef was not at his home when the attack took place late on December 23, police said.

According to Fraidoon Obaidi, the head of the Kabul police's criminal investigation department, a security guard was killed in the attack. The gunmen fled the scene and no one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Zaeef, who served as the Taliban's envoy to Pakistan when the group ruled Afghanistan in the 1990s, has reconciled with the current U.S.-backed Afghan government.

The attack on Zaeef’s home comes two days after gunmen attacked the Kabul home of a prominent lawmaker from the volatile southern province of Helmand, killing eight people. The lawmaker escaped unharmed. The Taliban claimed responsibility for that attack.

Based on reporting by AP, khaama.com