The most recent of which, militants stormed a building housing an global aid organization in Kabul, provoking an overnight firefight with security forces in which three gunmen were killed and six civilians were wounded, Afghan officials said Tuesday.
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Sediq Sediqqi, spokesman for the Afghan Interior Minister, said sporadic gunfire started in the morning hours shortly after a suicide auto bomber targeted the Kabul residential neighborhood of Shar-e Now, or New City.
China on Tuesday condemned the bombing attacks which killed dozens of people in Kabul, capital city of Afghanistan in the last two days.
At least 42 people were rescued, including 10 foreigners from houses in the immediate vicinity of the NGO’s building, reports the Tolo News.
Amnesty International has described the attack as a “war crime”. The organization says its program in Afghanistan “strives to strengthen self-reliance while promoting basic human rights, good governance and social, economic and gender equality”.
Among those killed were six security officials including General Abdul Raziq, a senior Afghan army official and the chief of police for district two of Kabul city. The blast which took place late on Monday, was also near the site of a July bombing that killed more than 300 people, in the worst single bomb attack to ever hit the Iraqi capital. The insurgents have been fighting to overthrow the USA -backed government for 15 years, and frequently target Afghan security forces.
Tuesday’s gun battle comes a day after twin bombings at the defense ministry in Kabul claimed 24 lives.
Public Health Ministry spokesman Ismail Kawasi said 91 people were wounded in the attack in central Kabul.
Another official said the deputy head of President Ashraf Ghani’s personal protection force was among those killed.
The Taliban immediately claimed responsibility for that attack, in which a suicide bomber caught security forces personnel and civilians who rushed to help victims of the first explosion.
The attack was claimed by the Taliban and was followed a few hours later by a auto bomb in Share Naw, a business and residential area of the city close to the government and embassy district, which the insurgent group also claimed.
The violent episode highlighted the unstable security situation in Kabul just a month before a conference in Brussels where global donors are expected to vow to keep providing financial support to Afghanistan.
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The Taliban have also recently closed in on Kunduz – the northern city they briefly seized previous year in their biggest military victory since the 2001 U.S. invasion – leaving Afghan forces stretched on multiple fronts.
