By KUNA
Paris : French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has expressed horror at the attack that took place Sunday afternoon in the Afghan city of Kandahar, where at least 80 people were killed in a terrorist bombing during a sporting event.
Kouchner, who was on a tour of the Middle East when the event took place, issued a statement via the Foreign Ministry on what he called “a terrorist and hateful act at a popular and traditional meeting” where the blast took place.
Kouchner expressed his sympathy and condolences to the victims, one of whom is believed to be a noteworthy anti-Taliban figure in the Afghan town.
Sunday’s suicide attack is the largest on record in Afghanistan, with at least 80 victims but with a toll that could rise yet.
“These tragic circumstances can only reinforce our determination to stand beside the Afghan people and the democratic authorities of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in their fight for a free, prosperous, and pacified Afghanistan,” Kouchner said.
France has just over 1,000 troops deployed with international peace-keepers and NATO forces in Afghanistan and France also has six modern fighters based in Kandahar.
The French government is also deploying combat instructors with the Afghan army but has said it will only answer US requests for more troops at the NATO summit in Romania in early April.