Kabul Attack Kills Two Guards, Injures Civilians Outside Coalition Offices

November 21, 2012

by RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan

Two Afghan guards have been killed in a suicide attack targeting an international military complex in Kabul.

Agency reports suggested that five civilians were injured.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which targeted the Wazir Akbar Khan district of the capital around 8:20 a.m. local time, according to Sediq Sediqi, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry.

The area is home to many high-ranking Afghan officials, international organizations, and the headquarters of the U.S.-led international military coalition.

Police say the bombers were spotted by security guards as they approached the international coalition base on foot.

The guards fired on the assailants, killing them, but one of the suicide vests exploded.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid described the attack as marked by "fierce fighting" and carried out by fighters with "light and heavy weapons."

With additional reporting by Reuters, AFP, and dpa

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/suicide-blasts-rock-kabul/24776941.html

Copyright (c) 2012. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.