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Deadly suicide attack on Afghanistan funeral in Takhar | Deadly suicide attack on Afghanistan funeral in Takhar |
(40 minutes later) | |
At least 20 people have been killed in a suicide attack on a funeral procession in the northern Afghan province of Takhar, officials say. | |
Police said 30 were hurt in the attack in the provincial capital, Taloqan. | |
Among those killed was local MP Mutalib Beg, a former commander in the Western-backed Northern Alliance - the faction that fought against the Taliban. | |
Takhar is one of the provinces where Nato is handing over security duties to Afghan forces. | Takhar is one of the provinces where Nato is handing over security duties to Afghan forces. |
The BBC's Bilal Sarwary in Kabul says this is the third time a former Northern Alliance commander has been killed in the province. | |
He says Matalib Beg, an ethnic Uzbek, was an influential commander and a former police chief of Kunduz province. | |
There are reports that other senior officials were also at the funeral. | |
Although suicide attacks in the area are rare, our correspondent says an al-Qaeda affiliated group called the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan operates in the province. | |
No group has said it carried out the attack, but the Taliban and the IMU are likely to be among the main suspects. | |
Takhar governor Abdul Jabar Taqwa said he had been invited but had decided not to attend. |