Deputy Governor of Afghanistan's Kabul province killed in bomb blast: Interior Ministry

The deputy governor of Afghanistan's eastern Kabul province and his secretary were killed in a bomb blast, Tariq Arian, the spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Interior Affairs, confirmed on Tuesday.

"A magnetic bomb exploded on Mahboobullah Mohebi, the deputy governor for Kabul province, today at 0945 hrs [05:15 GMT], in the Makrorian area. Unfortunately, the deputy governor, along with his secretary, were killed, and two of his bodyguards were injured," Arian wrote on Twitter.

No terrorist group present in Afghanistan has claimed responsibility for the attack so far, but the Afghan presidential palace has blamed the Taliban militancy for the blast.

The High Council for National Reconciliation condemned the attack in a statement and expressed concern that such attacks could harm the peace process.

The Afghan government has accused the Taliban of targeting civilians and security forces despite a February agreement with the United States. The US launched an airstrike at insurgents in Kandahar Province last Friday to defend government forces.