Death toll from Afghan bank attack rises to 42

Death toll from Afghan bank attack rises to 42 (Roundup)

Monstersandcritics.com, Feb 20, 2011,

Kabul - The death toll in Saturday's suicide attack at a bank in eastern Afghanistan has risen again, to 42, an Interior Ministry spokesman said Sunday.

The attack on Friday saw five would-be suicide bombers armed with rifles and vests attack branch of Kabul Bank in Jalalabad city, according to Interior Ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashiri said.

21 security forces were confirmed dead in the attack, the spokesman said. Bashiri said 71 Afghan security forces were also wounded in the attack.

The toll breakdown was seven Afghan army troops and 14 policemen. The rest were civilians, the official said.

The bank was located at Kamran Plaza, a private office building in Jalalabad city, capital of eastern province of Nangarhar and the last checkpoint along the main transit highway between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The attack began on Saturday morning as Afghan security personnel queued up to receive their salaries at the bank. The gunmen and suicide bombers dressed in Afghan army uniforms entered and started a gun battle which lasted for several hours.

The security forces killed four insurgents and arrested one, who was identified as a Pakistani from South Waziristan.

'Razam Shah, who has been detained by police, is a Pakistan national and has confessed that he had planned the attack with the group,' Bashiri told reporters.

Pakistan has been denounced for allegedly harbouring Taliban leadership in Waziristan and other tribal areas in the west.

The incident on Saturday was the third attack by the Taliban in a business center in the last week.

The Afghan Interior Ministry also said there were 59 attacks by the Taliban throughout the country the last week, killing 40 civilians and injuring 105.

At the same time, 36 police were killed and 46 were injured in the same week, the Ministry said.

The Afghan security forces which have been an increasing target of the insurgents lately, is planned to take control of the areas which will be handed over by the international troops starting this year.