District chief succumbs to his injuries

SHARAN (PAN): The Sarawza district chief succumbed to his injuries sustained in a roadside bombing in southeastern Paktika province, an official said on Wednesday.

Appointed as the administrative head of the town nine days ago, Mohammad Akbar and his five guards were injured in a blast on Tuesday while travelling in a car in the Sarawza village, the governor’s spokesman, Mukhlis Afghan, told Pajhwok Afghan News.

Akbar was seriously injured and the victims were all taken to an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF facility in Sharan, the provincial capital, Mukhlis said, adding the district chief and a guard were in critical condition and the remaining guards had received slight injuries.

However, an official on Wednesday told Pajhwok Afghan News on condition anonymity that Akbar passed away while being evacuated to a hospital and laid to rest in the Sarawza village late on Tuesday.

Saida Jan, a resident of the district, also confirmed Akbar’s death.  Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the detonation.

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