KUNAR, Afghanistan — On August 18, an Afghan National Army officer and two children were killed, and 35 additional people were wounded in a rocket attack targeting the Afghanistan Independence Day gathering in the volatile Kunar province of Afghanistan; hospital sources confirmed the casualties.
Before the attack in Kunar, a bomb blast hit the vehicle of security official, wounding a child in the capital city of Kabul.
![Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, while speaking to the Independence Day gathering [Photo by Presidential Palace]](https://www.armedpolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Untitled.jpg)
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, while speaking to the Independence Day gathering [Photo by Presidential Palace]
He said that for Pakistan, the message is very clear: state to state relations should remain in the frame of national interest, because “we cannot overcome our national interest”, peace in the region is possible.
Kunar is one of the adjacent provinces with Pakistan of strategic importance, and a hot bed of Taliban fighters.
Afghanistan and Coalition Forces have launched joint operations against Taliban and the Islamic State fighters across the country; Their attacks have targeted the Islamic State Khurasan [Afghanistan Pakistan] chapter head Hafiz Sayed.
Afghan Taliban spokesman Zabihuallah Mujahid has claimed several attacks across the country, including the one in Kunar.
Malik Achakzai