Deputy Governor of Afghan Province Killed in Car Bombing

In this photo taken on June 4, 2023, an Afghan boy stands atop his house in Kandali village in Sholgara district of Balkh province. (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP)
In this photo taken on June 4, 2023, an Afghan boy stands atop his house in Kandali village in Sholgara district of Balkh province. (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP)
TT
20

Deputy Governor of Afghan Province Killed in Car Bombing

In this photo taken on June 4, 2023, an Afghan boy stands atop his house in Kandali village in Sholgara district of Balkh province. (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP)
In this photo taken on June 4, 2023, an Afghan boy stands atop his house in Kandali village in Sholgara district of Balkh province. (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP)

The deputy governor of Afghanistan's northern Badakhshan province was killed by a car bomb on Tuesday, the provincial spokesperson said.

"Nissar Ahmad Ahmadi, with his driver, has been killed and six civilians were injured," said Mahzudeen Ahmadi, the head of the information office of Badakshan, a province in the far north of the country that shares a border with China and Tajikistan.

It was not clear who was behind the bombing, which was the first known major blast or attack on a Taliban official in Afghanistan in several weeks, Reuters reported.

The Taliban administration has been carrying out raids against members of ISIS, which had claimed several major attacks in urban centers.

ISIS has also targeted Taliban administration officials, including claiming the killing of the governor of northern Balkh province in an attack on his office in March.



Trump Demurs on US Involvement on Iran, Araghchi Hints it Can Step in to End Fighting

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, June 16, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, June 16, 2025. (Reuters)
TT
20

Trump Demurs on US Involvement on Iran, Araghchi Hints it Can Step in to End Fighting

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, June 16, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, June 16, 2025. (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump declined on Monday to answer what it would take for US to be directly involved in the growing conflict between Israel and Iran, saying he did not want to talk about the issue.

Instead, he continued to press Iran on negotiations on its nuclear program.

“They should talk, and they should talk immediately,” Trump said during a bilateral meeting with the Canadian prime minister during the G7 summit.

Trump added: “I’d say Iran is not winning this war.”

Earlier, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi appeared to make a veiled outreach Monday for the US to step in and negotiate an end to dayslong hostilities between Israel and Iran.

In a post on X, the website formerly known as Twitter, Araghchi wrote that if Trump is “genuine about diplomacy and interested in stopping this war, next steps are consequential.”

“It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu,” Iran’s top diplomat continued. “That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy.”

The message to Washington comes as the most recent round of talks between US and Iran was canceled over the weekend after Israel targeted key military and political officials in Tehran on Thursday.