Taliban governor of Afghanistan Province, Muzammil, killed in explosion in his office

Mohammad Dawood Muzammil, the Taliban’s governor of the Balkh province in northern Afghanistan, was killed in an explosion in his workplace.

According to AFP on Thursday, Muzammil was the highest-ranking official to be assassinated since the Taliban retook power in 2021.

Since then, there has been a marked decrease in violence, but notable pro-Taliban figures and others have been killed in a number of attacks, many of which were claimed by Islamic State.
There has been no immediate claim of responsibility, according to the local police, and the cause of the most recent explosion is unknown.

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However, the governor was “martyred in an explosion by the enemies of Islam,” according to a tweet from Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.

He also said that an investigation would be launched to determine who was responsible for the attack and why.

According to reports, Muzammil oversaw the conflict with Islamic State jihadists while serving as governor of the eastern province of Nangarhar. Last October, he was relocated to Balkh.

The explosion happened “around 9am… inside the second floor of the governor’s office,” according to Mohammed Asif Waziri, the spokesman for the Balkh police.

According to police, at least one other person died in the assault. There are reports of numerous other people suffering injuries.

A bang was heard. I dropped to the ground,” Khairuddin, a victim of the explosion, told AFP. He claimed that while witnessing the explosion, a friend lost a hand.

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He claimed that the explosion happened right when the governor entered his office.