Kabul: A senior Taliban cleric, Sheikh Rahimullah Haqqani, was killed in a suicide bomb blast in a seminary in Kabul when an attacker detonated explosives hidden in a plastic artificial leg on Thursday, international media reported.
Rahimullah Haqqani was a fierce supporter of female education and stood strong against the militant Islamic State (IS) group.
He previously survived two previous assassination attempts — including one in Pakistan in October 2020 claimed by the Islamic State that killed at least seven people.
“Very sadly informed that respected cleric (Sheikh Rahimullah Haqqani) was martyred in a cowardly attack by enemies,” said Bilal Karimi, a spokesperson for the Taliban administration.
However, it could not be determined who was behind the attack as yet.
“We are investigating who this person was and who had brought him to this important place to enter the personal office of Sheikh Rahimullah Haqqani. It’s a very huge loss for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,” said one senior Taliban official of the interior ministry. – Agencies
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