Ukraine in Arabic | NATO troops killed in Kabul suicide blast

16.09.2014 - 12:03 #Afghanistan, #NATO, #Ashraf Ghani, #Abdullah Abdullah, #Taliban, #Kabul, #Troops, #Explosion

A suicide bomber struck a foreign motorcade travelling through the Afghan capital Kabul on Tuesday, killing at least three NATO troops

KYIV/Ukraine in Arabic/ The huge blast, which the Taliban has claimed responsibility for, happened right next to the heavily fortified US embassy. More than a dozen people were wounded.

Another 16 civilians were injured, Afghan government sources say. A fourth NATO soldier is seriously injured.

The blast took place in heavy traffic on the airport road near the US embassy at about 08:00 local time (03:30 GMT).

The blast comes amid uncertainty over disputed presidential elections and the withdrawal of most Nato troops by 2015.

A statement from the NATO-led coalition confirmed that three International Security Assistance Force members died in the attack.

They were travelling in an armored land cruiser. The vehicle was destroyed in the blast.

Our correspondent says the explosion shook buildings across the center of the capital. The blast took place close to the country's Supreme Court.

Foreign troops were seen giving first aid to blood-stained soldiers from the convoy. The nationality of the dead and injured remains unclear.

The eyewitness, Ahmad Ajmal, had a narrow escape.

He told: "When I got out of the vehicle and started walking, an explosion happened; the same vehicle I was in is there and destroyed."

Taliban sources told reporters via e-mail and on Twitter that the group had carried out the attack.

The two candidates vying for Afghanistan's presidency, Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, have been locked in a dispute over the results of the recent election, which was rocked by allegations of fraud.

The two are now negotiating a power-sharing deal and met on Monday to discuss it.

Correspondents say that Taliban insurgents have taken advantage of uncertainty over the presidential election to launch attacks.

In July a Taliban suicide bomber killed four people, including at least three foreign security guards, in an attack on a key counter-narcotics building outside Kabul airport.

That attack came days after security forces repelled an attack on Kabul airport by the Taliban.

bbc.com