Karzai Escapes Taliban Assassination Attempt

Sun, Apr 27, 2008 at 8:17:51 am PDT

Hamid Karzai has been saying he intends to bring Taliban terrorists into the political process in Afghanistan; this is how they repay him: Afghan president safe after fleeing gunfire at Kabul event.

KABUL, Afghanistan - Suspected Taliban militants attacked a ceremony attended by the Afghan president on Sunday, unleashing automatic weapons fire that sent foreign dignitaries and senior members of the government fleeing for cover.

Three people, including a lawmaker, were killed and eight were wounded. President Hamid Karzai, Cabinet ministers and ambassadors escaped unharmed, the presidential palace said.

Karzai later appeared on television saying several suspects in the attack had been arrested. He said that “the enemy of Afghanistan” tried to disrupt the ceremony but were thwarted by security forces.

A Taliban spokesman claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it had deployed six militants with suicide vests and guns to target the president. Spokesman Zabiullah Mujaheed said three had died.