Taliban Refugee Minister Khalil Haqqani Killed In Bomb Explosion

According to a report by The Associated Press, the explosion struck inside the ministry, killing Khalil Haqqani, the refugee minister.

Haqqani was the most high-profile casualty of a bombing in Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power three years ago. The US Treasury had classified Khalil Haqqani as a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" in 2011 and the State Department offered a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest.

According to Reuters, Anas Haqqani, the nephew of the minister Khalil Rahman Haqqani said that Haqqani and six others were killed in the explosion.

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"We lost a very brave Mujahid," Anas Haqqani told Reuters, using the Taliban's term for its fighters, meaning a holy warrior. "We will never forget him and his sacrifice."

There is no clarity on who was behind the blast as no one claimed the.

Khalil Haqqani is the uncle of Sirajuddin Haqqani, the acting interior minister who leads a powerful network within the Taliban.

The Islamic State group's affiliate, a major rival of the ruling Taliban, has carried out previous attacks across Afghanistan.

In early September, a suicide bomber in the southwestern Qala Bakhtiar neighbourhood in Kabul killed at least six people and wounding 13 others. IS had claimed responsibility for the attack.

(With inputs from AP, Reuters)