Afghan president Hamid Karzai buried his assassinated brother today.
Ahmad Wali Karzai, a younger half brother of the president and one of the most powerful and controversial men in southern Afghanistan, was killed by a family security guard at his home in the city.
President Karzai, who flew to Kandahar hours after his brother was shot, led a procession of thousands of mourners under a tight security blanket from the centre of Kandahar city to the family's ancestral village of Karz, some 20km away.
He was accompanied by his family and some of Afghanistan's most influential leaders, including at least one possible successor to Ahmad Wali Karzai's unofficial crown, Gul Agha Sherzai, currently the governor of eastern Nangarhar province.
The president knelt by the side of his brother's grave clutching his hand, weeping as the crowds looked on. Concerned mourners then pulled the president away, warning him that television cameras were recording his every move.
Ahmad Wali Karzai was shot by Sardar Mohammad, a senior member of the Karzai family's security team in Kandahar who had known his victim for a decade. Mohammad was shot dead by bodyguards moments after he opened fire.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for one of the most high-profile assassinations of the last decade. They have in the past taken responsibility for attacks that security services have questioned their role in.
Two explosions were heard in Kandahar today shortly after the burial. It was not immediately clear what caused the blasts or whether there were any casualties.
Reuters