Two explosions rocked Kabul early Monday morning around the Shash Darak vicinity of the Afghan capital Kabul leaving 29 dead, including 9 journalists and nearly 50 wounded.

The first explosion involved a bike-riding attacker who blew himself up in close proximity to the National Directorate of Security (NDA) Afghanistan’s main intelligence agency according to the spokesman for the interior ministry.

About half an hour later, a second attacker targeting the emergency medical services and journalists flocking at the scene of the first blast and detonated his explosive device. He is reported to have posed as a journalist.

Nine journalists who were at the scene to cover the aftermath of the first blast were killed according to the Afghan Journalists Safety Committee.

The ministry of health through its spokesman has confirmed 29 people have been killed and 50 others wounded.

Among the deceased members of the press are; Yar Mohammad Tokhi of YOLOnews, Shah Marai- a Kabul-based photographer for Agence France Presse, Ghazi Rasooli and cameraman Nowroz Ali Rajabi of Afghan 1TV, Abadullah Hananzai, and Moharram Durrani all with Radio Free Europe, two other members of Azadi Radio whose names haven’t been made public were also killed.

Monday twin blasts occur barely one week after a voter registration centre was targeted, killing 57 people and wounding over 100 others in Kabul.

In the Kandahar province, 11 Afghan children were killed by a suicide vehicle that targeted a patrolling convoy of Romanian troops as part of a NATO mission.

Recently, the attacks seem to have become frequent ahead of the delayed parliamentary and municipal elections in the country scheduled for October 20.

Neba Benson,

BaretaNews Foreign Correspondent/Analyst