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UAE Mourns Five Officials Killed in Kandahar Attack | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Afghan security forces are seen in front of Kandahar guesthouse after a bomb blast in Kandahar, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2017. (AP Photos/Allauddin Khan)


Dubai – Riyadh – Kandahar – Three days of mourning have been declared in the UAE following the death of five officials in a string of bombings that ripped across Afghanistan on Tuesday.

UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan ordered flags across the country to be flown at half-mast in honor of the slain diplomats.

In a statement issued by the Ministry of Presidential Affairs, Sheikh Khalifa directed all ministries and government departments and institutions across the country to fly the flag at half-mast for three days “in honor of the martyrs who gave their lives in defense of humanitarian causes.”

More than 62 people were killed and 100 wounded in a series of attacks in Afghanistan on Tuesday.

The UAE confirmed that five of its officials were killed in a bomb attack in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan.

In a statement, the UAE said the officials had been carrying out “humanitarian, educational and development projects” in the area of Kandahar.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, said the country “mourned with pride the heroes who died while carrying out humanitarian work.”

“Five martyrs have offered their lives while striving to serve the weak, the children and the needy,” he said on Wednesday.

For his part, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, said: “Abhorrent acts of terror conducted by forces of evil and darkness won’t deter us from walking the path of giving and charity.”

The Custodian of Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, conveyed his deep condolences to Abu Dhabi for the death of UAE diplomats.

In a telephone call to Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, King Salman expressed strong denunciation and condemnation of the brutal terrorist attack in Kandahar, killing five UAE nationals, describing it as an act that contradicts Islamic values.

King Salman also called Afghan President Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmedzai, to express strong denunciation and condemnation of Tuesday’s bombings.

The King conveyed his condolences and sympathy to the president, the Afghan people and families of the victims, wishing the injured a quick recovery.