Large protest against Taliban over bus attack
More than 1,000 people shouted anti-Taliban slogans in a protest against the slaying of 26 young men from their community.
The demonstration in eastern Laghman province was one of the largest anti-Taliban gatherings since the fall of the hard-line Islamist regime following the U.S. invasion in late 2001.
A Taliban spokesman said the men were taken from a bus Oct. 16 in Kandahar province and killed because they were members of Afghan security forces. But Afghan officials said the victims were civilians who were on their way to find jobs in neighboring Iran. Most of them were from Laghman, an area north of Kabul.
Protesters in Mehtar Lam shouted “Death to the Taliban” and “Death to killers.” They waved black flags in mourning.
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