At least 27 killed in attack on Afghan political rally: officials

At least 27 people were killed in an attack on a political rally in Kabul Friday, officials said, in the first major assault in the city since the U.S. signed a withdrawal deal with the Taliban.

"Twenty-seven bodies and 29 wounded transported by ...ambulance so far," Wahidullah Mayar, health ministry spokesman was quoted as saying by Reuters, adding a warning that fatalities could rise.

Interior ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said women and children were among the dead.

Gunmen attacked a ceremony in the Afghan capital where a top Afghan political leader, Abdullah Abdullah, was present but escaped unharmed.

The gathering marked the anniversary of the death of Abdul Ali Mazari, an ethnic Hazara leader who was killed in 1995 after being taken prisoner by the Taliban.

Source(s): AFP ,Reuters