Kabul, Afghanistan • Three separate Taliban attacks killed at least 19 people in Afghanistan on Saturday, including a senior judicial official and personnel working to clear one of the most heavily mined regions of the world.
The attacks came amid a spike in violence just weeks before the international military mission in Afghanistan comes to an end on Dec. 31., 13 years after the September 11 attacks sparked a U.S.-led invasion to rid Afghanistan of the Taliban's extremist regime.
As the Taliban insurgency vows to maintain its campaign against government, military and foreign targets, the attacks have sparked tight security in Kabul and concerns among Afghans that the situation can only worsen after foreign forces have transitioned to a support role from Jan.