Bomb Kills Afghan Election Candidate, Wounds Seven: Officials

A bomb placed under a sofa killed an Afghan election candidate on Wednesday, officials said, as deadly violence escalates ahead of the October 20 parliamentary ballot.

Kandahar, Afghanistan, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 17th Oct, 2018 ) :A bomb placed under a sofa killed an Afghan election candidate on Wednesday, officials said, as deadly violence escalates ahead of the October 20 parliamentary ballot.

The Taliban quickly claimed responsibility for the attack, which takes the number of candidates killed so far during the campaign season to at least 10.

Jabar Qahraman had been meeting with supporters in his campaign office in the southern province of Helmand -- a Taliban stronghold -- when the attack happened, provincial governor spokesman Omar Zhwak told AFP.

Another seven people were wounded in the blast in the provincial capital Lashkar Gah.

The bomb had been hidden under Qahraman's sofa, Zhwak said.

"We have arrested several people in connection with the blast," he added.

Provincial police spokesman Salam Afghan confirmed the explosion had killed one person and wounded at least two.

Most of the 10 candidates who have died in the lead-up to the election were murdered in targeted killings.