Bomb hits Afghan governor's motorcade en route to funeral

A bomb exploded against the motorcade of an Afghan governor on Wednesday, as he made his way to the funeral of President Hamid Karzai’s brother. The attack wounded two Afghan troops, the government said. The governor was en route to join thousands of mourners in the Kandahar province.

Ahmed Wali Karzaï Reuters/Ahmad Nadeem

The governor of Helmand province, Gulab Mangal, and the provincial chief of intelligence were unhurt in the attack. The bomb was detonated by remote-control, wounding two nearby soldiers, the government’s office said.

President Hamid Karzai openly wept at his brother’s funeral on Wednesday. Prayers were held at Mandigak Pamace, a government guesthouse, before the body was driven for buriel in the family village of Karz.

The president, at one point, climbed inside the grave to help move his brother’s body, kissing him on the forehead before lowering him to the ground.

Some analysts warn that Ahmed Wali Karzai’s assassination at his home on Tuesday could push southern Afghanistan into renewed instability. Wali Karzai was an influential provincial council chief with any number of possible candidates who were looking to rid him of power, according to security experts.

His death comes just when US-led NATO troops had started to withdraw troops, in hopes of a political solution to end the decade-long war.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton telephoned the Afghan president to send her condolences and said that Washington would remain “committed to supporting the government and people of Afghanistan in their struggle for peace.”