JNN 20 Sept 2011 KABUL: The head of Afghanistan’s High Peace Council, and former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani, who had been tasked with trying to negotiate a political end to the war, was killed on Tuesday evening, a senior police officer said.

His home is in Kabul’s heavily guarded diplomatic enclave, and the attack came just a week after a 20-hour siege at the edge of the area sometimes known as the “green zone”.

“Rabbani has been martyred,” Mohammed Zahir, head of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Kabul Police, told Reuters.

Zahir, later told reporters at the scene: “Two men were negotiating with Rabbani on behalf of the Taliban this evening – one of them had hid explosives in his turban.

“He approached Rabbani and detonated his explosives. Rabbani was martyred and four others including Massom Stanikzai were injured.” Aymaq said that Stanikzai had said the men were “very trusted” before the meeting.

He added: “Two men came to meet Rabbani this evening saying they had special messages from the Taliban. One of them put his head on the shoulder of Rabbani and detonated the explosives hidden in his turban, martyring Rabbani.”

A close associate of Rabbani told AFP on condition of anonymity: “Two Taliban were brought into Rabbani’s home by Stanikzai in his vehicle to meet Rabbani.” Rabbani was not at home at the time but he came later. Stanikzai and the two guys who were Taliban were waiting in the hall. On of the two guys had a turban bomb. He hugs Rabbani and detonates.”

The bomber was killed while the injured accomplice was arrested, the source said. Four of Rabbani’s bodyguards were also killed.

A senior Karzai advisor Masoom Stanekzai, who was also in the meeting was alive but badly wounded as they met with two members of the Taliban.

Rabbani was formerly leader of a powerful mujahideen party during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s and served as president in the 1990s when mujahideen factions waged war for control of the country after the Soviet withdrawal.

Rabbani was president of the Afghan government that preceded the Taliban. After he was driven from Kabul in 1996, he became the nominal head of the Northern Alliance, mostly minority Tajiks and Uzbeks, who swept to power in Kabul after the Taliban’s fall. Rabbani is an ethnic Tajik.

Rabbani was a well liked figure among the political echelons of Afghanistan, though the Taliban have a reserved approach towards him.

The assassination comes a week after a 20-hour gun and grenade attack that on Kabul’s diplomatic enclave by insurgents, and three suicide bomb attacks on other parts of the city – together the longest-lasting and most wide-ranging assault on the city.

Last week’s siege was the third major attack on the Afghan capital since June and included three suicide bombing in other parts of the city. At least five policemen and 11 civilians were killed.

All three of those attacks are believed to be the work of the Haqqani network, a Taliban-allied insurgent faction, based along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.

Karzai to shorten his trip to US

Afghan President Hamid Karzai is cutting short his visit to the United States following the killing of former president Burhanuddin Rabbani who was leading Taliban peace efforts, officials said.

“The president was made aware of this incident and he is cancelling the rest of his trip to the US and is coming back to the country,” his spokesman Hamid Elmi said.

A senior government official speaking anonymously added that Karzai was still expected to meet US President Barack Obama before leaving.

Foreign ministry spokesman Janan Mosazai said Karzai was cutting short his trip to the UN General Assembly in New York “after he heard about the profoundly tragic news of Professor Burhabuddin Rabbani’s death in this evening’s terrorist attack in Kabul by the enemies of peace in Afghanistan.”