As feared, the convoy of presidential fore-runner Dr. Abdullah Abdullah came under attack on Friday when he was leaving a campaign rally in Kabul. The attack left behind six dead and injured almost a dozen while Dr. Abdullah escaped unharmed. The attack has been condemned by the president, the second presidential candidate and opponent of Dr. Abdullah, Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai and different political and social figures of the country. Till latest reports, no faction or anti-state groups have claimed the responsibility for the attack.

It was relieving that the presidential candidate escaped unharmed; otherwise, it could have badly derailed the democratic advancement of country and could have resulted in a frightening gap in the overall establishment of the country. As all the economic and investment initiatives are waiting for the finalization of the presidential elections and all the projects are going to take off with the smooth transition of power to the new president, any unlucky incident that can result in the delay in this regard could have catastrophic consequences. At present, all the economic activities have come on a complete standstill and hopes of every single citizen is pinned with the upcoming elections so any incident resulting in the delay or deferral of these elections will add to the severity of the situation and create so many problems for the common public who have become tired of the continued poverty and joblessness.

Taliban and other anti-state factions had already threatened to derail the second and crucial stage of presidential elections and their increased activities due to summer is also a proof of it. Every day, dozens of militants are killed or injured by the military operations carried out in all parts of the country, as stated by the Ministry of Interior. These operations of military are the practical proof of the pledge of our forces that have made all the preparations to ensure a foolproof security during this crucial stage of elections. But in this regard, most important is the security of our presidential candidates as in case of any harm to them, the whole process of elections would become meaningless and country would fall victim to chaos and anarchy. Last week, two key supporters of Dr. Abdullah were killed in a province which also resulted in a lot of criticism and security fears.

Keeping in view above facts, government and security forces should make sure the foolproof security of the two presidential candidates and their key supporters and campaign members so that the process of elections should be finished on time and there should not be any kind of obstacle in the smooth advancement of democracy.

It is also important to note that some of the people (enemies of the people of Afghanistan) tried to take benefit of the attack and fuel and extend the ethnic distances. This was believed to be another attempt by the enemies of Afghanistan to pave the ground for war among different tribes and ethnicities of Afghanistan. If Abdullah or his running mates were harmed in the attack in such a time when all the people of Afghanistan are in a critical and sensitive situation with everyone sentimental, this could be a massive and harmful attack on the stability of the country. The elements behind the attack had no other motive but to provide grounds of civil war and once again lead the country towards instability and that through playing with the sentiments of the Afghans who are now awaiting their next leader.
This is the time for the now-at-least-mature people of Afghanistan not to get deviated any more, to show their unity and neutralize the plans of the enemies of Afghanistan. We must not forget that the enemies that fueled the civil wars in Afghanistan for decades are still trying to break up our country, rather this time with modern tactics.  It would be better for a crises-hit nation to avoid blaming the Friday’s attack on specific tribe or sect. We must not be sleeping anymore. Fortunately, it can be observed that the people may have come to know that the attack was organized by the "Enemies of Afghanistan" not the political rivals of Dr. Abdullah or his running mates.