Eid al-Adha attack in north Afghanistan kills at least eight

At least eight people, mainly civilians, died in a suicide bomb attack in the city of Baghlan in north Afghanistan on Sunday, the first day of the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha. 

Province of Afghanistan, Baghlan Wikimedia Commons

The blast, which came as people were returning home from prayers, follows two days after Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar urged his fighters to avoid civilian casualties in the decade-long Afghan war.

Interior ministry spokesman Siddiq Siddiqui in Kakbul said there were two suicide bombers involved, one of whom detonated himself and caused the casualties, while the other was arrested by police before he could blow himself up.

REUTERS

He said signs indicated Taliban insurgents were behind the blast.

Previously seen as relatively stable, Baghlan has seen an increase in militant attacks in recent years.

On Friday, the Taliban published a statement on their website attributed to Mullah Omar calling on fighters "to take every step to protect the lives and wealth of ordinary people".

The statement, issued to mark Eid al-Adha, warned of punishments under Islamic sharia law for fighters responsible for civilian deaths.

Meanwhile, the United Nations says the number of civilians killed in the Afghan war in the first half of this year rose 15 per cent to 1,462, with insurgents behind 80 per cent of the deaths.