Officials: Explosions in Kabul kill 2, wound 5

A chain of bomb explosions targeting Kabul police on Wednesday killed a district police chief and his bodyguard, and also wounded five people, officials said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the blasts, which were all caused by so-called sticky bombs, explosive devices attached to vehicles that are remotely detonated or set off by timers.

The largest of the attacks struck a police car in a western Kabul neighborhood; the force of the blast was so strong that the car flipped upside down, killing the city's District 5 police chief, Mohammadzai Kochi, and his bodyguard. The driver of the car was wounded, according to two Afghan officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

Security personnel inspect the site of a deadly bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

Kabul police spokesman Ferdaws Faramarz said an hour before that blast, two other sticky bomb explosions took place. One of them, about 500 meters (yards) away from where the police car was targeted, wounded four civilians. There were no casualties in the other blast, which took place elsewhere in Kabul.

Afghanistan has seen a nationwide spike in bombings, targeted killings, and violence on the battlefield as peace negotiations in Qatar between the Taliban and the Afghan government have stalled.

The Islamic State group's local affiliate has claimed responsibility for some of the attacks, but many go unclaimed, with the government putting the blame on the Taliban. The insurgents have denied responsibility for most of the attacks.

Security personnel and health workers carry a body from a bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

In eastern Ghazni province, the provincial governor's spokesman, Wahidullah Jumazada, said an airstrike called in during fighting with the Taliban killed at least 22 insurgents, including foreign fighters in the group.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid immediately tweeted a denial, saying Afghan government forces were defeated in the fighting in Ghazni. He also claimed the Taliban have no foreign fighters in their ranks.

Pistols of security personnel are seen on the ground after a deadly bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

Security personnel inspect the site of a deadly bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

EDS NOTE: GRAPHIC CONTENT - The body of a police officer lies on the ground after a deadly bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

Security personnel inspects a body inside a vehicle involved in a bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

A destroyed vehicle sits at the site of a deadly bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

Security personnel inspect the site of a deadly bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

Security personnel and health workers carry a body after a deadly bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AP PhotoRahmat Gul)

MANADO, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia's Mount Ruang volcano spewed more hot clouds on Wednesday after an eruption the previous day forced the closure of schools and airports, pelted villages with volcanic debris and prompted hundreds of people to flee.

Seven airports, including Sam Ratulangi international airport in Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi province, remained closed after Tuesday's eruption, the second in two weeks. Schools were shut to protect children from volcanic ash.

The volcano is on tiny Ruang Island, part of the Sitaro islands chain.

The Indonesian geological agency urged people to stay at least 7 kilometers (4 miles) from the volcano’s crater. It warned people on nearby Tagulandang Island, the closest to the volcano, of possible super-heated volcanic clouds from a further eruption and a tsunami if the mountain's volcanic dome collapses into the sea.

Video released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed about a hundred villagers from Tagulandang Island being evacuated on a navy ship. Hundreds of others were waiting at a local port to be evacuated.

Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said 11,000 to 12,000 people living within a 7-kilometer danger zone would be taken to government shelters.

Tuesday’s eruption darkened the sky and peppered several villages with ash, grit and rocks. No casualties were reported.

After Mount Ruang's April 17 eruption, authorities warned that a subsequent eruption might collapse part of the volcano into the sea.

Ruang is among about 130 active volcanoes in Indonesia. The archipelagic nation is prone to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes because of its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a series of fault lines stretching from the western coast of the Americas through Japan and Southeast Asia.

In this photo released by the Vulcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG) of the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Mount Ruang releases volcanic materials during its eruption on Wednesday, May 1, 2024, on Sulawesi Island, Indonesia. Indonesia's Mount Ruang volcano erupted Tuesday for a second time in two weeks, spewing ash almost 2 kilometers (more than a mile) into the sky, closing an airport and peppering nearby villages with debris. (PVMBG via AP Photo)

In this photo provided by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), residents of Tagulandang island sit on a ship of National Search and Rescue Agency to evacuate after Mount Ruang releases volcanic materials in Sulawesi island, Indonesia, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Indonesia's Mount Ruang volcano erupted Tuesday for a second time in two weeks, spewing ash almost 2 kilometers (more than a mile) into the sky, closing an airport and peppering nearby villages with debris.(Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency via AP)

In this photo released by the Vulcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG) of the Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Mount Ruang releases volcanic materials during its eruption, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, on Sulawesi Island, Indonesia. Indonesia's Mount Ruang volcano erupted Tuesday for a second time in two weeks, spewing ash almost 2 kilometers (more than a mile) into the sky, closing an airport and peppering nearby villages with debris. (PVMBG via AP Photo)

Mount Ruang volcano is seen during the eruption from Tagulandang island, Indonesia, Wednesday, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Indonesia's Mount Ruang volcano erupted Tuesday for a second time in two weeks, spewing ash almost 2 kilometers (more than a mile) into the sky, closing an airport and peppering nearby villages with debris.(AP Photo/ Hendra Ambalao)