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Deadly Suicide Bomb Attack in Kabul

by VOA News

   At least seven people are dead and nine others wounded in a suicide
   bomb attack in Kabul near a gathering of Afghanistan's leading
   religious clerics and scholars.

   No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing.

   The bombing happened just as 2,000 members of the Afghan Ulema Council
   had adjourned and were leaving the tent erected for the meeting. Just
   moments before, the council had issued a fatwa, or ruling, declaring
   that suicide attacks were forbidden under Islamic law.

   The group also issued an appeal calling on the Afghan government and
   the hardline Taliban to agree to a cease-fire and enter into
   negotiations on a peace deal.

   The Taliban has stepped up attacks across Afghanistan in recent weeks
   as it begins its spring offensive.