Afghan market car bomb kills 89 in

Paktika province
At least 89 people have been killed and dozens injured in a suicide attack at
a busy market in eastern Afghanistan's Paktika province, local officials say.
They say the attacker drove a 4x4 vehicle into the market in Orgun district and
detonated the explosives.
The market was full of people doing their shopping for the Muslim festival
Ramadan at the time of the attack.
No group has claimed the attack, but Taliban insurgents said they had not carried
it out.

"We clearly announce that it was not done by the Mujahedeen of the Islamic
Emirate of Afghanistan," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid was quoted as
saying by Reuters news agency.
Eyewitnesses and medical staff said local hospitals were overrun with casualties
after one of the deadliest attacks in months in Afghanistan.
The eastern province of Paktika shares a border with Pakistan's restive and
volatile tribal areas.
Orgun is one of Paktika's safest areas, though members of the Haqqani militant
network are thought to have a presence there.

Analysis - Bilal Sarwary, BBC News, Kabul
Tuesday's attack is not a surprise for security forces in the border district with
Pakistan's Waziristan region. The Pakistan-based Haqqani network is active in
the area.
Last week, suicide attackers tried to assassinate local police commander
Azizullah - who is widely credited with bringing security to the province, and what
officials call breaking the backbone of the Haqqani network in the province.
Many car and truck bombs have been used by the Haqqani network in the
province, where they have tried to target officials. But in recent years, most of the
truck bombs were either defused, seized or could not reach their targets.
For the Afghan civilians, Tuesday's attack once again brings to light how daily life
is fraught with many dangers in Afghanistan. The Orgun district bazaar once a
bustling town of shops and restaurants now lies in ruin, and covered in blood.
The attack will continue to undermine people's confidence in the Afghan
government and the day-to-day security.
There are fears that the death toll will rise further

Israel to intensify Gaza air strikes as
truce falters
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel has "no choice" but to step
up its air strikes on Gaza, after an Egyptian truce initiative failed to halt
militant rocket attacks on Israel.
"When there is no ceasefire, our answer is fire," Mr Netanyahu said.
Hamas, which controls Gaza, has not responded officially to the initiative. Its
military wing has rejected it.
Palestinian officials say Israeli raids have killed 194 people. Israel on Tuesday
reported its first fatality.
Israel launched its Operation Protective Edge eight days ago to try to halt the
rocket attacks.
PM 'a failure'
The Egyptian-backed truce was to have started at 09:00 (06:00 GMT).

Analysis
Kevin Connolly, BBC Middle East correspondent, Jerusalem
It took six hours for the first attempt to broker a deal between Israel and Hamas
to founder.
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu had warned that if the rocket fire continued,
Israel would hit back hard - and now it has.
In the search for a ceasefire, this is clearly a setback although not necessarily a
terminal blow.
Hamas wants some concessions - like the lifting of the tight restrictions Israel and
Egypt impose on Gaza's border - in advance of any deal.
Egypt won't give up on its diplomatic efforts after a single setback but the
resumption of hostilities means the question of whether Israel will eventually
order ground operations is back on the agenda.

Israel's security cabinet approved it and operations were halted for six hours.
However, Israel then resumed its attacks on Gaza, saying militants had
continued to fire dozens of rockets.
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri: Ceasefire proposal "is like an ambush"

Nigeria's Goodluck Jonathan:
#BringBackOurGirls 'political'
A global campaign was launched to secure the release of the girls
Nigeria's president has accused activists of "playing politics" after his
meeting with parents of the abducted schoolgirls was called off.
The #BringBackOurGirls group should be ashamed of manipulating "the victims
of terrorism", he said.
Mr Jonathan had been due to hold his first meeting with some of the girls' parents
on Tuesday.
Islamist group Boko Haram captured more than 200 girls during a raid on their
boarding school in Chibok in April.
Mr Jonathan had been widely criticised for failing to meet distraught parents and
not doing enough to rescue the girls.
'Psychological terrorism'
#BringBackOurGirls was a global campaign launched on social media to secure
the release of the girls.
President Goodluck Jonathan is "extremely distraught" according to his spokesman
Doyin Okupe
Mr Jonathan agreed to the meeting on Monday following an appeal by Pakistani
rights campaigner Malala Yousafzai.
Mr Jonathan had planned to meet 12 parents and five girls who escaped shortly
after being captured but the parents withdrew at the last minute without giving
any reason.
"Unfortunately, political forces within the Nigerian chapter of Bring Back Our Girls
have decided to take this opportunity to play politics with the situation and the
grief of the parents and the girls. They should be ashamed of their actions," he
said in a statement.
The girls have now spent more than three months in captivity
"Those who would manipulate the victims of terrorism for their own benefit are
engaging in a similar kind of evil: Psychological terrorism," he added.