At least 12 people were killed and 66 others wounded in a suicide attack in Afghanistan’s capital Saturday, the spokesman for Kabul’s police chief said.
Three American contractors with the NATO-led Resolute Support mission were killed, two of them as a result of their wounds, in what the mission described as an attack on their convoy from a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device.
The police chief spokesman, Ebadullah Karimi, said the bomber blew up his explosives-laden Toyota Corolla in the Macrorayan area of Kabul on Saturday afternoon. The convoy of contractors and Afghan civilians was the target, he said.
The explosion jolted central Kabul and broke the windows of dozens of nearby apartments, Karimi said.
It happened during the afternoon rush hour in front of a private health clinic where dozens of people gather daily to see doctors.
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid, in an email to media, said the explosion was not the work of the Taliban.
At least one woman was among the dead. Five women and six children were wounded, said Wahidullah Mayar, a spokesman for the Afghan Health Ministry.
The U.S. Embassy in Kabul issued a statement strongly condemning the attack.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families who suffered as a result of this attack,” the statement said. “The United States remains committed to assisting our Afghan partners in their efforts to ensure a peaceful future for Afghanistan.”
Last week, a suicide bomber detonated his car at a checkpoint near the entrance to Kabul International Airport, killing four people and wounding 15 others, Afghan officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility.
On August 10, three separate attacks in Kabul killed more than 50 people, including 27 students at a police academy and one U.S. service member. The Taliban claimed responsibility for two of the attacks.
