Suicide attack kills Afghan deputy governor

KABUL - A suicide bomber on an explosive-laden motorcycle struck a convoy of provincial officials in southern Afghanistan Tuesday, killing a deputy governor and four of his companions, officials said.

Deputy governor of Ghazni province Mohammad Kazem Allahyar, his son, two of his nephews and a guard were killed in the attack in the provincial capital Ghazni, said Zamarai Bashary, spokesman for the interior ministry.

“Allahyar was en route to his office when the bomber targeted his vehicle in the convoy,” he said.

Taliban militants took responsibility for the attack in an online statement but said that no one was riding the rigged motorcycle when it exploded.

The militants rely heavily on the use of roadside and suicide bombings as part of their campaign against Afghan forces and US-led international troops in the country.