JALALABAD: A suicide bomber struck in a crowd of people in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar on Thursday killing at least eight, officials said, in an attack that underscored worsening security.

The bomber approached the crowd of dozens on foot in provincial capital Jalalabad as they were demonstrating in support of a local police commander who had been sacked and calling for his reinstatement, provincial spokesman Attaullah Khogyani said.

“Unfortunately, eight people were killed, all of them civilians,” he said. A further 15 people including children were wounded in the explosion, he added.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement. Provincial health director Najib Kamawal confirmed the toll and said some of those wounded were in a serious condition.

In another incident, the militant Islamic State group beheaded 15 of its own fighters due to infighting in Afghanistan’s eastern province of Nangarhar, officials said.

The two incidents underline the insecurity and lawlessness across Afghanistan, where thousands of civilians have been killed or wounded this year amid unrelenting violence involving militant groups including IS and the Taliban.

Attaullah Khogyani, the provincial governor’s spokesman, said the 15 IS fighters were executed after a bout of infighting in the group, which has become notorious for its brutality. The killings occurred in the Surkh Ab bazaar of Achin district.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2017