4 killed after deadly explosion close to Russian embassy in Afghanistan

Observers have speculated that the attacks could be aimed at destabilising attempts to revive peace talks with Taliban, but there is no confirmation.

“No employee, anchor, office, news team and reporter of these TV channels holds any immunity”, the Taliban said at the time, rejecting their reporting as propaganda by “Satanic networks”.

(AP Photo/Rahmat Gul). Afghan security forces inspect the site of a suicide attack near the Russian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016.

DAMASCUS – At least 3,000 people have been killed in Russian airstrikes in Syria since September 30 of a year ago, a Syrian monitor group reported on Wednesday.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Taliban, who had taken exception to Tolo News’ coverage of the fall of Kunduz to militants last October, said the flagship station or any of its affiliates, are legitimate targets, according to Washington Post. “So long as insurgents falsely categorize journalists as ‘military targets, ‘ media freedom in Afghanistan is in peril”. Early reports said a man on motorbike rammed the bus, but authorities later said it was a auto packed with explosives.

The attack targeted staff from Afghan broadcaster Tolo TV and video production company Kaboora Productions.

A Pashto-language Taliban statement described the bombing as “revenge” for alleged “false allegations” against the group.

Asking insurgency groups to immediately stop targeting civilians, Human Rights Watch (HRW) slammed the incident as an atrocity created to undermine Afghanistan’s still-fragile media freedom.

“We’ve frequently seen operations by the Taliban up in this area”, Phil Mudd, a counterterrorism analyst said on CNN.

Envoys from Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States are scheduled to meet in Kabul later this week to discuss possible peace initiatives. By “revealing the truth to the public, the media become unacceptable for the Taliban”, he said. The White House said Biden and Kerry reaffirmed USA support for improved ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan, offered condolences to both for recent terrorist attacks in their countries and called on them to stay committed to a negotiated end to the Afghan civil war.