Bomb kills Afghan election candidate, wounds seven: officials

A bomb placed under a sofa killed an Afghan election candidate on Wednesday, officials said, as deadly violence escalates ahead of the October 20 parliamentary ballot.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack on Jabar Qahraman, who was running for the southern province of Helmand, a stronghold for the militant group.

Another seven were wounded in the blast, provincial governor spokesman Omar Zhwak told AFP.