Suicide bomber kills 11 in Afghan capital

A Taliban suicide bomber struck a bus carrying Afghan military personnel in Kabul today, killing at least 11 people, officials said, as the militants step up their campaign of violence aimed at undermining the Western-backed government.
The bombing came as the country struggles through its first democratic transition of power, with electoral officials announcing today that the release of initial election results has been postponed until next week due to allegations of fraud.
The blast tore through the green bus blowing out the windows and leaving the interior spattered with blood. Afghan soldiers cordoned off the scene as the bus was lifted by a crane to be carried away.

Defense Ministry spokesman Gen. Mohammad Zahir Azimi said eight members of the army were killed and 13 wounded in the blast. Three civilians also were killed, according to Kabul's criminal investigation chief Gul Agha Hashim.
Army Gen. Kadamshah Shahim said the bomber was stopped before he could enter the bus, preventing a higher casualty toll. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack via spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.
Preliminary results from a June 14 runoff vote between Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai had been due today. But the Independent Election Commission said they were being postponed until Monday so ballots from 1,930 polling stations in 30 provinces could be audited because of complaints about irregularities.

Abdullah won the first round of voting on April 5 by a large margin, but he says his campaign monitors recorded widespread ballot box stuffing and other efforts to rig the vote in favor of his rival.
He suspended relations with electoral authorities and said he would boycott results if they were announced before his complaints were resolved.
IEC chairman Ahmad Yousuf Nouristani expressed confidence the five-day delay would be sufficient time to ensure the transparency of the process. "We are under no pressure," he said.