KABUL: A Taliban suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden car in Kabul yesterday outside a compound where many foreign workers are based, killing at least two civilians, officials said.
The blast was followed by bursts of gunfire as Afghan quick-reaction forces rushed to the Green Village, a fortified residential complex near the airport in the east of the city.
“Initial investigations show it was suicide car bomb attack,” interior ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said, confirming that two civilians, including one woman, had been killed.
“A small car packed with explosives hit two vehicles as they were exiting the Green Village compound,” he added. At least four other civilians were also injured.
The Taliban militant group claimed responsibility for the strike. “Our mujahideen targeted a convoy of foreign forces at the Green Village which is used by the Americans,” Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said.
“Heavy casualties have been inflicted on the enemy.”
Taliban spokesmen often issue exaggerated casualty reports.
The Afghan capital has been relatively peaceful in recent months after a series of suicide bomb and gun attacks earlier this year when foreign compounds, the Supreme Court, the airport and the presidential palace were all targeted.
Yesterday’s attack, the first major strike in Kabul since July, comes as pressure grows on the Afghan government to seek a peace deal with the rebels. AFP
