The number of militants killed in an attack by the largest non-nuclear weapon ever used in combat by the U.S. military has risen to 94, an Afghan official said Saturday.

Ataullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor in Nangarhar, said the number of Islamic State group dead was up from the 36 reported a day earlier. A Ministry of Defense official had said Friday the number of dead could rise as officials assessed the bomb site in Achin district.

“Fortunately there is no report of civilians being killed in the attack,” Khogyani said.

The U.S. attack on a tunnel complex in remote eastern Nangarhar province near the Pakistan border killed at least four IS group leaders, Khogyani said. He said a clearance operation to assess the site of the attack was continuing.

The strike using the Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, or MOAB, was carried out Thursday against an Islamic State group tunnel complex carved into the mountains that Afghan forces had tried to assault repeatedly in recent weeks in fierce fighting in Nangarhar province.

Former Afghan president Hamid Karzai on Saturday criticized both the Afghan and U.S. governments for the attack in Nangarhar. Addressing a gathering in capital Kabul, Karzai said that allowing the U.S. to carry out the bombing in Nangarhar was “a national treason” and an insult to Afghanistan.

The office of current President Ashraf Ghani said Friday there was “close coordination” between the U.S. military and the Afghan government on the operation, and they were careful to prevent any civilian casualties.

The U.S. estimates 600-800 IS fighters are in Afghanistan, mostly in Nangarhar. The U.S. has concentrated on fighting them while also supporting Afghan forces against the Taliban. The U.S. has more than 8,000 US troops in Afghanistan, training local forces and conducting counterterrorism operations.

Also on Saturday, Khogyani said a district leader and three others were wounded when their vehicle was targeted by a bomb. One of the wounded was Ghalib Mujahid, Bati Kot district chief, he said.

“The district chief and others are out of danger and are not in life-threatening condition,” he said.

Last November, Mujahid was attacked by a sticky bomb attached to the vehicle and he was wounded and his driver was killed.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App now </s> The death toll of America's 'mother of all bombs' attack on Afghanistan has risen to 94 ISIS members including four terrorist leaders, an Afghan official said.

Ataullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor in Nangarhar, said the number of Islamic State group dead was up from the 36 reported a day earlier.

A Ministry of Defense official said on Friday that the number of dead could rise as officials assessed the bomb site in Achin district.

'Fortunately, there is no report of civilians being killed in the attack,' Mr Khogyani said.

But the increased death toll in Nangarhar was announced as officials in southern Helmand province reported that at least 11 civilians were killed and one wounded in two roadside bomb blasts overnight.

The US attack on a tunnel complex in remote eastern Nangarhar province near the Pakistan border killed at least four IS group leaders, Mr Khogyani said.

He said a clearance operation to assess the site of the attack was continuing.

The strike using the Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, or MOAB, known as the Mother Of All Bombs, was carried out Thursday against an Islamic State group tunnel complex carved into the mountains which Afghan forces had tried to assault repeatedly in recent weeks during fierce fighting in Nangarhar province.

On Saturday, former Afghan president Hamid Karzai criticized both the Afghan and US governments for the attack.

Addressing a gathering in the capital, Kabul, Mr Karzai said that allowing the US to carry out the bombing was 'a national treason' and an insult to Afghanistan.

Current President Ashraf Ghani's office said on Friday that there was 'close co-ordination' between the US military and the Afghan government on the operation, and they were careful to prevent any civilian casualties.

President Donald Trump called it a 'very, very successful mission' and some Afghan residents have welcomed the blast and even called for more.

The US estimates 600-800 IS fighters are in Afghanistan, mostly in Nangarhar. America has concentrated on fighting them while also supporting Afghan forces against the Taliban. The US has more than 8,000 US troops in Afghanistan, training local forces and conducting counter-terrorism operations. </s> The death toll from a suicide bomb attack at a protest gathering in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar on Tuesday has risen to 68, with 165 wounded, a government official said.

The provincial governor's spokesman, Attaullah Khogyani, issued a statement with a revised casualty total on Wednesday after earlier estimates put the death toll at 32.

Scores of demonstrators had blocked the highway between the provincial capital Jalalabad and a key border crossing with Pakistan when the bomber struck.

The protesters had come from Achin district to demand the removal of a local police commander.

The attack was one of the worst in Afghanistan for months but security officials have warned that similar attacks are likely if crowds gather for campaign rallies ahead of parliamentary elections in October.

"... the explosion happened and I found myself surrounded by blood and flesh," Zar Khan, one of the injured, told AFP news agency.

Bombing schools

The deadly suicide attack came hours after multiple bombings targeted schools in Jalalabad.

One blast went off at the entrance of Malika Omaira girls' school in the morning, killing a 14-year-old boy and wounding four other people. It was followed by two explosions in Behsud district, also near two schools.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani condemned the suicide attack, as well as the school bombings in Nangarhar.

In a statement, he said that "attacks on civilian facilities, mosques, women, children, are all crimes against humanity".

The Taliban denied any involvement in the attacks and no other group claimed responsibility for the violence.

Nangarhar has been a main stronghold of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) fighters since early 2015.

Attacks continue

A number of attacks across Afghanistan in recent weeks have killed hundreds of civilians and prominent journalists.

Twin bombings at a sports club in the capital Kabul last Wednesday killed at least 20 people and wounded 70 others. Two journalists - a reporter and cameraman - working for local Tolo News were among the dead.

On Sunday, a suicide bomber detonated his explosives close to a procession commemorating the death of a former anti-Soviet and anti-Taliban commander, Ahmed Shah Massoud, killing at least seven people and wounding 24.

A ceasefire in June between the Taliban and the government - as well as talks between US officials and Taliban representatives in Qatar in July - raised hopes the 17-year conflict could end with negotiations.

However, the country has since seen a rise in deadly attacks that have targeted civilians. </s> An Afghan official says the number of militants killed in an attack by the largest non-nuclear weapon ever used in combat by the U.S. military has risen to 94. (Source: Raycom Media)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - The number of militants killed in an attack by the largest non-nuclear weapon ever used in combat by the U.S. military has risen to 94, an Afghan official said Saturday.

Ataullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor in Nangarhar, said the number of Islamic State group dead was up from the 36 reported a day earlier. A Ministry of Defense official had said Friday the number of dead could rise as officials assessed the bomb site in Achin district.

"Fortunately there is no report of civilians being killed in the attack," Khogyani said.

The increased death toll in Nangarhar was announced as officials in southern Helmand province reported at least 11 civilians were killed and one wounded in two roadside bomb blasts overnight.

The U.S. attack on a tunnel complex in remote eastern Nangarhar province near the Pakistan border killed at least four IS group leaders, Khogyani said. He said a clearance operation to assess the site of the attack was continuing.

The strike using the Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, or MOAB, was carried out Thursday against an Islamic State group tunnel complex carved into the mountains that Afghan forces had tried to assault repeatedly in recent weeks in fierce fighting in Nangarhar province.

Former Afghan president Hamid Karzai on Saturday criticized both the Afghan and U.S. governments for the attack in Nangarhar. Addressing a gathering in capital Kabul, Karzai said that allowing the U.S. to carry out the bombing was "treason" and an insult to Afghanistan.

Current President Ashraf Ghani's office said Friday there was "close coordination" between the U.S. military and the Afghan government on the operation, and they were careful to prevent any civilian casualties.

The U.S. estimates 600-800 IS fighters are in Afghanistan, mostly in Nangarhar. The U.S. has concentrated on fighting them while also supporting Afghan forces against the Taliban. The U.S. has more than 8,000 US troops in Afghanistan, training local forces and conducting counterterrorism operations.

In Helmand province, at least 11 civilians were killed and one wounded in two roadside bomb blasts late Friday evening, said Omar Zwak, spokesman for the provincial governor.

"All victims of the attack were innocent civilians including women and children," said Zwak. The 11 died in a blast in Nawa district when their vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb. Another person was wounded when a second bomb exploded in Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand, he said.

Also on Saturday, Khogyani said a district leader and three others were wounded when their vehicle was targeted by a bomb. One of the wounded was Ghalib Mujahid, Bati Kot district chief, he said.

"The district chief and others are out of danger and are not in life-threatening condition," he said.

Last November, Mujahid was attacked by a sticky bomb attached to the vehicle and he was wounded and his driver was killed.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> The death toll from a suicide bomb attack at a protest gathering in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar on Tuesday has risen to 68, with 165 wounded, a government official said.

The suicide bomber set off explosives in a crowd of hundreds of people protesting on the main road to the border crossing into neighbouring Pakistan. They were protesting against a police commander.

The provincial governor's spokesman, Attahullah Khogyani, issued a statement with a revised casualty total on Wednesday after earlier estimates put the death toll at 32.

The attack was one of the worst in Afghanistan for months but security officials have warned that similar attacks are likely if crowds gather for campaign rallies ahead of parliamentary elections in October. </s> The death toll from a suicide bomb attack at a protest gathering in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar on Tuesday has risen to 68, a government official said, adding that 165 people were wounded. The suicide bomber set off explosives in a crowd of hundreds of people protesting on the main road to the border crossing into neighboring Pakistan, Reuters said. They were protesting against a police commander. The provincial governor’s spokesman, Attahullah Khogyani, made a statement with a revised casualty total on Wednesday. Earlier estimates put the death toll at 32. The attack was one of the worst in Afghanistan for months. </s> A 13-year-old suicide bomber killed at least five people and wounded 40 today in an attack on a wedding ceremony in eastern Afghanistan.

Neither the Taliban nor Islamic State claimed responsibility for this morning's attack in Nangarhar, a volatile province on the border with Pakistan.

Among those killed was Malik Toor, a commander of a pro-government militia who had organised the wedding, police official Fayz Mohammad Babarkhil said. It is understood Toor was likely the target.

'This morning at 8am, a suicide bomber detonated himself at a wedding ceremony...in Pachiragam district', Attaullah Khogyani, the Nangarhar governor's spokesman, told AFP. 'As a result, five killed, more than 40 wounded.'

Hazrat Khan Khaksar, the Pachiragam district governor, put the toll at 14 killed and 14 wounded but he cautioned the figures might change.

Zahir Adil, the Nangarhar regional hospital spokesman, told AFP that two bodies and 11 wounded victims had been taken to the hospital in central Nangarhar city.

The explosion comes just days after historic talks between Afghan representatives and the Taliban wrapped up as part of a US-led effort to end the war.

At the conclusion of the two-day summit in Doha, parties unveiled a joint resolution pledging a 'roadmap for peace' in which they sought to reduce civilian casualties to 'zero'.

Direct talks between US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and the Taliban also took place last week. </s> Kabul: An Afghan official said a suicide bomber struck an election rally in the country's eastern Nangarhar province, killing at least 13 people and wounding more than 30.

Attahullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor, said some of the wounded are in critical condition, which increases concerns that the death toll could rise further.

The attack took place in the province's Kama district on Tuesday afternoon where supporters of Abdul Naser Mohmand had gathered to back his campaign as an independent candidate in Afghanistan's parliamentary elections scheduled for 20 October.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack in Nangarhar, where both the Taliban and an Islamic State affiliate are active. </s> The number of ISIS militants killed in Thursday’s U.S. military strike in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan, using the Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) bomb, has reportedly risen to 94, an Afghan official revealed on Saturday. According to military sources, the 21,000 lb GBU-43 massive ordinance blast weapon used in the attack on Thursday was the largest non-nuclear weapon the U.S. military has ever used in combat.

The Associated Press reports that Ataullah Khogyani, a spokesperson for the governor of Afghanistan’s remote Nangarhar province, said in a statement released on Saturday that the number of ISIS militants who died in the “Mother Of All Bombs” attack launched on Thursday had risen from 36 reported on Friday to “at least 94.”

At least four ISIS military leaders were also killed in the attack, Khogyani claimed.

“Fortunately there is no report of civilians being killed in the attack,” he added.

The statement by the spokesperson for the governor of Nangarhar came after an Afghan Ministry of Defense official said on Friday that ongoing clearance and assessment of the bomb site in the Achin district of Nangarhar indicated that the number of dead could rise.

Khogyani said that the latest death figure was received from Afghan military personnel involved in clearance operations and assessment of the site following the massive blast attack. He added that the assessment was still ongoing, suggesting that the figure could rise further.

According to a previous statement by the U.S. military, the MOAB attack was targeted at a tunnel complex in the remote eastern Nangarhar province near the border with Pakistan where ISIS militants are known to be based. The bomb strike hit an extensive network of tunnels dug into the mountains. The attack was launched on Thursday after Afghan forces had tried repeatedly to capture the tunnels in fierce and prolonged fighting with ISIS militants in the province.

Soon after the attack, a U.S. commander in Afghanistan said that the bomb had achieved it intended purpose, implying that the tunnel had been destroyed.

“This weapon was used against Isis-K and their sanctuary inside Afghanistan,” NATO forces commander General John Nicholson said., according to the AP. “The purpose of this operation was to eliminate their sanctuary inside Southern Nangarhar. The weapon achieved its intended purpose.”

But ISIS later released a counter-statement denying that any of its militants were killed or injured in the blast attack.

And later on Saturday, during an address delivered at an event in Kabul, the capital city of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, the former president of the country, criticized the Afghan government for allowing the U.S. military to launch the bomb attack. He said that allowing the U.S. military to launch such an attack in Nangarhar was an insult to Afghans. He added that the action amounted to what he termed “national treason.”

But the administration of President Ashraf Ghani had said earlier on Friday that the Afghan military authorities were working closely with U.S. military forces in the country to coordinate operations against ISIS militants based in the area. He also said that the operations were being conducted with care taken to prevent civilian casualties.

U.S. military authorities in Afghanistan estimate that ISIS could have up to 800 fighters in the country, with most operating in the remote eastern Nangarhar province. The U.S. forces in Afghanistan, about 8,000-strong, are involved with their Afghan counterparts in military operations against ISIS in the Nangarhar area, as well as against Taliban insurgents operating in the country.

U.S. personnel in the country are engaged mostly in training local forces and carrying out counter-terrorism operations, according to the AP.

The MOAB weapon used on Thursday is a GPS-guided weapon that was first tested in 2003 and has not been used in combat since them. The weapon’s blast generates a mushroom cloud that can be seen from about 20 kilometers away.
The death toll according to a Nangarhar official source now stands at 94 militants, including 4 commanders. Former president Hamid Karzai says the strike was in violation of national sovereignty.