KATHMANDU, June 22, 2016 (Xinhua) -- Army personnel carry the coffin of a Nepali victim who was killed in the suicide bomb attack in Afghanistan, in Kathmandu, on June 22, 2016. The Nepalese government dispatched an aircraft to Afghanistan to bring home the remains of 12 Nepalese nationals killed in the Kabul suicide bombing on Monday. (Xinhua/Pratap Thapa)
KATHMANDU, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Nepal on Wednesday received the bodies of the 12 Nepalese killed in a suicide bomb attack in Kabul on Monday.
The bodies of those killed were airlifted to Kathmandu through a chartered flight of national flag carrier Nepal Airlines(NA).
Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Kamal Thapa, Minister for Home Affairs Shakti Basnet, among others, went to the Tribhuwan International Airport (TIA) in the afternoon to receive the bodies.
After offering final tributes to the Kabul victims, the prime minister expressed grief over the loss of the innocents in the violent act. Talking briefly with media, PM Oli said that it was a cowardice act to kill Nepalese, who didn't have any relations or rivalry with Taliban.
Taliban has claimed the responsibility of the suicide bombing, which took place in Kabul at the wee hours of Monday.
The 14 people including 12 Nepalese were killed in a suicide bombing on Monday while they were riding in a mini bus to their duty station. All those were working as security guards for the Canadian Embassy.
The victims, majority of them retired Nepal Police and Nepal Army officials, were hired by a British security consultancy firm Sabre International.
Seven Nepalese migrants were also injured in the Kabul attack. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, five of them were evacuated and are undergoing treatment at New Delhi based Apollo hospital.
Meanwhile, 24 Nepalese working in Afghanistan have also returned home in the same special flight of NA owing to security concerns. All the returnees were working as security guards in the Canadian mission.
According to the Department of Foreign Employment, 8,889 Nepalese migrants had received permission to work as security guards in war-hit Afghanistan within the last 10 years.
The government has been sending its citizens to Afghanistan to work as security guards for the United Nations and diplomatic missions. There are six recruiting agencies for sending the workers to Afghanistan.
According to the Foreign Employment Act 2064, 110 countries are regarded as legal destinations for the Nepalese migrant workers.
