Afghan parliamentary candidate Abdul Jabar Qahraman was killed Wednesday in a bombing attack in Helmand Province. The bomb was planted under his office chair, killing him and three other people in the room. He is the tenth candidate killed in the past two months.
Qahraman was behind the creation of the Sangorian militia, a group that works with the Afghan spy agencies to try to infiltrate the Taliban. This has, unsurprisingly, made them a popular target for Taliban attacks.
The Taliban was quick to take credit for this attack as well, saying Qahraman is a “renowned Communist.” The Afghan Interior Ministry reported three suspects have been arrested in the attack.
With just a few day left before the election, a recent spate of attacks on candidates and rallies seems to be on the upswing. Both the Taliban and ISIS are calling for people to boycott the elections, and such attacks clearly send a message that going to the polls is dangerous.