Afghan DM, Army Chief Resign over Attack on Soldiers
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Afghanistan’s army chief and defense minister resigned in the wake of a fatal terrorist attack on an Afghan army base in the northern province of Balkh that killed at least 140 soldiers on Friday.
Afghan Defense Minister Abdullah Habibi and the country’s National Army Chief of Staff Qadam Shah Shaheem have resigned from their posts, Khaama Press reported.
“Defense Minister Abdullah Habibi & Army Chief of Staff Qadam Shah Shahim stepped down with immediate effect,” office of the Afghan president, ARG Palace, said.
It came after the bloody attack, claimed by the Taliban, killed at least 140 Afghan troops on April 21.
Another 160 people were wounded in the assault on the base, a few miles from Mazar-i-Sharif, the capital of Balkh.
Two of the attackers blew themselves up and seven were killed in the assault, which lasted several hours and targeted soldiers at a mosque and a dining facility, the Afghan Defense Ministry said.
