At Least 13 Killed in Suicide Bombing Outside Ministry in Afghan Capital

Security forces in the Afghan capital Kabul. (Reuters)
Security forces in the Afghan capital Kabul. (Reuters)
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At Least 13 Killed in Suicide Bombing Outside Ministry in Afghan Capital

Security forces in the Afghan capital Kabul. (Reuters)
Security forces in the Afghan capital Kabul. (Reuters)

At least 13 people were killed on Monday when a suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance to Afghanistan's rural rehabilitation and development ministry in the west of Kabul, government spokesmen said.

More than 30 people were wounded in the blast.

Kabul police spokesman Hashmat Stanekzai said a suicide bomber on foot struck outside the Ministry as employees were leaving work. Public Health Ministry spokesman Wahid Majroh confirmed the toll

"Woman, children and employees of the (rehabilitation) ministry are among the victims," Najib Danish, spokesman for the interior ministry, told Reuters.

The ISIS terrorist group later claimed responsibility for the attack.

The bombing came shortly after Afghan Taliban militants on Saturday announced a surprise three-day ceasefire over the Muslim Eid holiday at the end of this week, their first offer of its kind, days after the government declared an unconditional ceasefire of its own against the Taliban.

It was not clear exactly when the Taliban ceasefire would begin, as Eid starts when the moon is first sighted, but it will be Thursday or Friday. The government ceasefire runs until June 20.

A week ago, a motorcycle suicide bomber killed 14 people near a gathering of Muslim clerics in the Afghan capital after they had issued a fatwa against suicide bombings, officials said, in the latest in a series of attacks to hit Kabul.

In April, two explosions in Kabul killed at least 26 people, including nine journalists who had arrived to report on an initial blast and were targeted by a suicide bomber.

A week earlier, 60 people were killed and more than 100 wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up outside a voter registration center in the city.

Elsewhere in Afghanistan on Monday, a roadside bomb struck a microbus in eastern the eastern Ghazni province, killing six people. Arif Noori, a spokesman for the governor of the Ghazni province, said women and children were among those killed in the blast, which also wounded three people.

He added that the bomb was planted by the Taliban. The insurgents mostly target security forces and government officials, but their roadside bombs often kill civilians.

Elsewhere in Ghazni, at least three local police and 10 Taliban fighters were killed in clashes, Noori said.

In the eastern Nangarhar province, a suicide bomber wounded at least 10 civilians when he struck near the education department in the provincial capital of Jalalabad, announced Attahullah Khogyani, spokesman for the governor.

He said three other suicide bombers were shot and killed by security forces as they tried to enter the building. He stated a vehicle filled with explosives was found near the scene of the attack.

In a separate attack in the same province, a sticky bomb wounded 14 civilians in the Chaparhar district, according to hospital spokesman Inamullah Miakhail. Gen. Ghulam Sanayee Stanekzai, provincial police chief in Nangarhar, said the bomb went off as people were shopping in a market.

No one claimed either attack. Both the Taliban and ISIS are active in eastern Afghanistan, especially Nangarhar.



Türkiye Says Greece-Chevron Activity off Crete Unlawful 

A Chevron gas station sign is pictured at one of their retain gas stations in Cardiff, California October 9, 2013. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
A Chevron gas station sign is pictured at one of their retain gas stations in Cardiff, California October 9, 2013. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
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Türkiye Says Greece-Chevron Activity off Crete Unlawful 

A Chevron gas station sign is pictured at one of their retain gas stations in Cardiff, California October 9, 2013. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
A Chevron gas station sign is pictured at one of their retain gas stations in Cardiff, California October 9, 2013. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo

Türkiye said on Thursday it opposed Greece's "unilateral activities" in energy fields south of Crete with a consortium led by US major Chevron as a violation of international law and good neighbourly relations.

Athens responded that its policies abide international law.

The Chevron-led consortium signed exclusive lease agreements on Monday to look for natural gas off southern Greece, expanding US presence in the eastern Mediterranean.

"We oppose this unlawful activity, which is being attempted in violation of the 2019 Memorandum of Understanding on Maritime Jurisdiction between Libya and our country," the Turkish Defense Ministry said at a press briefing.

It said the activity, while not directly impacting Türkiye's continental shelf, also violated Libya's maritime jurisdiction that was declared to the United Nations in May last year.

"We continue to provide the necessary support to the Libyan authorities to take action against these unilateral and unlawful activities by Greece," the ministry said.

A 2019 agreement signed by Türkiye and Libya set out maritime boundaries in the Mediterranean Sea. It was rejected by Greece as it ignored the presence of the Greek island of Crete between the coasts of Türkiye and Libya. The Chevron deal doubles the amount of Greek maritime acreage available for exploration and is the second in months involving a US energy major, as the European Union seeks to phase out supplies from Russia and the US seeks to replace them.

Asked about the Turkish objections later on Thursday, Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis told a press briefing that Athens followed an "active policy" and "exercises its rights in accordance with international law and respects international law steadfastly - and I think no one questions that, period."

There was no immediate comment from Chevron.

Neighbors and NATO members Türkiye and Greece have been at odds over a range of issues for decades, primarily maritime boundaries and rights in the Aegean, an area widely believed to hold energy resources and with key implications for airspace and military activity.

A 2023 declaration on friendly relations prompted a thaw between the sides and leaders have voiced a desire to address remaining issues.


Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor Arrested on Suspicion of Misconduct in Public Office

FILE - Britain’s Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, looks round as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
FILE - Britain’s Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, looks round as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
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Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor Arrested on Suspicion of Misconduct in Public Office

FILE - Britain’s Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, looks round as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
FILE - Britain’s Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, looks round as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)

UK police arrested Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

The Thames Valley Police, an agency that covers areas west of London, including Mountbatten-Windsor’s former home, said it was “assessing” reports that the former Prince Andrew sent trade reports to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2010. The assessment followed the release of millions of pages of documents connected to a US investigation of Epstein.

The police force did not name Mountbatten-Windsor, as is normal under UK law. But when asked if he had been arrested, the force pointed to a statement saying that they had arrested a man in his 60s. Mountbatten-Windsor is 66.

“Following a thorough assessment, we have now opened an investigation into this allegation of misconduct in public office,’’ the statement said. “It is important that we protect the integrity and objectivity of our investigation as we work with our partners to investigate this alleged offence."

“We understand the significant public interest in this case, and we will provide updates at the appropriate time,” the statement added.

Pictures circulated online appearing to show unmarked police cars at Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, with plainclothes officers appearing to gather outside the home of Mountbatten-Windsor.


Georgia Arrests Two Foreigners Trying to Purchase Uranium

FILE PHOTO: A block with the symbol, atomic number and mass number of Uranium (U) element, in this illustration taken January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A block with the symbol, atomic number and mass number of Uranium (U) element, in this illustration taken January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Georgia Arrests Two Foreigners Trying to Purchase Uranium

FILE PHOTO: A block with the symbol, atomic number and mass number of Uranium (U) element, in this illustration taken January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A block with the symbol, atomic number and mass number of Uranium (U) element, in this illustration taken January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Georgia has ‌detained two people who attempted to purchase $3 million worth of uranium and a cache of a radioactive isotope found in nuclear weapons testing programs, the national security service said on Thursday.

Two foreign nationals from unspecified countries were arrested in the city of Kutaisi, the State Security Service said in a statement.

"They were planning to ‌illegally purchase ‌nuclear material uranium and radioactive ‌substance ⁠Cesium 137 for $3 ⁠million and illegally transport it to the territory of another country," Reuters quoted it as saying.

It said other foreigners had been arriving in Georgia in recent weeks with the aim of purchasing and transporting the nuclear and ⁠radioactive materials, without elaborating further.

The ‌statement did ‌not specify the quantity of materials the individuals were ‌attempting to procure. There were ‌no details on the substances' origin or potential destination.

Cesium 137 is a radioactive isotope present primarily in the aftermath of nuclear weapons testing ‌and nuclear power plant accidents such as the Chernobyl disaster in ⁠then-Soviet ⁠Ukraine in 1986.

The security of nuclear materials was one of the biggest concerns after the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, of which Georgia was part. There have been several serious incidents involving the illicit trade in nuclear materials in Georgia over recent decades.

Most recently, three Chinese citizens were arrested in the capital Tbilisi for attempting to purchase two kilograms of "nuclear material" uranium.