Afghanistan: Explosion occurs in Charikar, Parwan Province, Oct. 1

Event

An explosion occurred in Charikar, the capital of Parwan Province, Oct. 1. According to a Taliban spokesperson, the blast targeted a Taliban vehicle. Casualty figures from the incident are unclear, though unconfirmed reports indicate three Taliban fighters were wounded in the blast. Taliban officials say Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) operatives are responsible for the attack, and that Taliban fighters subsequently captured two IS-K operatives and killed an unspecified number of suspects in Charikar following the incident.

Charikar is located approximately 10 km (6) miles northwest of Bagram and 45 km (28 miles) north of Kabul.

Context

IS-K has recently claimed responsibly for a series of bombing and shooting attacks in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar Province to the east of Kabul. IS-K activity remains concentrated in eastern Afghanistan. In addition to IS-K, the Taliban has faced some armed resistance from the National Resistance Front (NRF), a group comprised primarily of former Afghan government security forces and associated militias, in areas northeast of Kabul. The threats of terrorism and armed conflict are likely to remain elevated in Afghanistan over the near term, especially in country's eastern provinces.