Suicide bombers attacked two police stations in Afghanistan's capital, and then battled security forces from buildings they occupied in the latest spate of violence.

At least five people were killed and 16 wounded in the Wednesday's attacks, said health ministry spokesman Wahidullah Majroh, adding that the casualty toll was likely to rise.

Eight suicide bombers took part in the attacks, one of which was claimed by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and the other by the Taliban, Interior Minister Wais Ahmad Barmak said.

However, Afghanistan's intelligence agency blamed the Taliban's Haqqani network and Pakistani group Lashkar-e-Taiba for both attacks.

In the first incident in western Kabul, assailants hurled hand grenades and blew themselves up, setting part of the police station on fire, Barmak said, adding a third suicide bomber was shot and killed by police.

Two police were killed in the attack and two police and a civilian were wounded. ISIL claimed the attack in a brief statement carried by its Aamaq news agency.

The second attack unfolded in the city centre, where a suicide bomber struck the entrance to a police station in order to clear the way for another four bombers.

Barmak said "two or three" more attackers were holed up in a nearby building, trading fire with security forces.The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement sent to media.

Afghanistan's Western-backed government is fighting an intensifying war with both the Taliban and the ISIL group, that has turned much of Kabul into a high-security zone of concrete blast walls and razor wire.

The Afghan capital has seen an increase in bombings and other attacks against security forces and civilians since the Taliban announced the beginning of their spring offensive on April 25.

Fighting traditionally picks up in Afghanistan as warmer weather melts snow in mountain passes, allowing fighters to move around more easily.

Twin suicide bombings claimed by ISIL last week killed at least 25 people, including 10 journalists who had rushed to the scene of the first attack. This was the deadliest assault on reporters since the fall of the Taliban in 2001. </s> Dozens of people were killed or wounded when as many as five suicide bombers attacked a police headquarters in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday, officials say.

The attack began about 6:30am when one bomber detonated a car packed with explosives at the gate of the police headquarters in Gardez city, capital of Paktia province, said Najib Danish, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry.

Four more attackers stormed the gate after the blast, with at least two quickly killed by police.

The others held out against Afghan special forces that had responded to the attack, he said.

Mr Danish put the toll at two police killed and five wounded.

However, doctors at the city hospital said they had received the bodies of at least five police, as well as at least 30 wounded people, including 20 civilians.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, with spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid reporting more than 100 police were killed and wounded.

The Islamist group often exaggerates casualty numbers in attacks against government targets and security forces.

Insurgent groups such as the Taliban and Islamic State have launched a string of attacks across Afghanistan in recent weeks.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on a mosque in Kabul on Thursday.

A massive truck bombing and later suicide attacks left hundreds dead and wounded at the end of May and beginning of June, raising political tensions for the Afghan Government, which is struggling to combat rising violence and corruption.

Thousands of international troops remain in the country to train and assist Afghan security forces as well as carry out counterterrorism missions.

American defence officials say they will decide in the coming weeks whether to send between 3,000 to 5,000 more troops as requested by military commanders. </s> Suicide bombers launch co-ordinated attack in Afghanistan, killing and wounding dozens

Posted

Dozens of people were killed or wounded when as many as five suicide bombers attacked a police headquarters in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday, officials say.

Key points: Car bomb explodes, then multiple suicide bombers attack

Doctors say at least five police killed and 30 people wounded

Taliban claims responsibility for attack

The attack began about 6:30am when one bomber detonated a car packed with explosives at the gate of the police headquarters in Gardez city, capital of Paktia province, said Najib Danish, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry.

Four more attackers stormed the gate after the blast, with at least two quickly killed by police.

The others held out against Afghan special forces that had responded to the attack, he said.

Mr Danish put the toll at two police killed and five wounded.

However, doctors at the city hospital said they had received the bodies of at least five police, as well as at least 30 wounded people, including 20 civilians.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, with spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid reporting more than 100 police were killed and wounded.

The Islamist group often exaggerates casualty numbers in attacks against government targets and security forces.

Insurgent groups such as the Taliban and Islamic State have launched a string of attacks across Afghanistan in recent weeks.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on a mosque in Kabul on Thursday.

A massive truck bombing and later suicide attacks left hundreds dead and wounded at the end of May and beginning of June, raising political tensions for the Afghan Government, which is struggling to combat rising violence and corruption.

Thousands of international troops remain in the country to train and assist Afghan security forces as well as carry out counterterrorism missions.

American defence officials say they will decide in the coming weeks whether to send between 3,000 to 5,000 more troops as requested by military commanders.

Reuters

Topics: terrorism, unrest-conflict-and-war, afghanistan </s> Kabul: A suicide bomber struck a voter registration centre in the Afghanistan capital on Sunday, killing at least 31 people, officials said.

Public Health Ministry spokesman Wahid Majro said another 54 people were wounded in Sunday's attack, updating an earlier toll. General Daud Amin, the Kabul police chief, said the suicide bomber targeted civilians who had gathered to receive national identification cards.

The large explosion echoed across the city, shattering windows miles away from the attack site and damaging several nearby vehicles. Police blocked all roads to the blast site, with only ambulances allowed in. Local TV stations broadcast live footage of hundreds of distraught people gathered at nearby hospitals seeking word about loved ones.

The Taliban, who usually claim their attacks, denied involvement. That means the bombing was likely carried out by a local Islamic State affiliate, which has been behind past bombings in Kabul that targeted civilians. Both groups are opposed to democratic elections.

Last week, three police officers responsible for guarding voter registration centres in two Afghan provinces were killed by militants, according to authorities.

Elsewhere in Afghanistan, a district police chief in the northern Balkh province died of his wounds after being shot Saturday during a gunbattle with insurgents, according to Sher Jan Durrani, spokesman for the provincial police chief in Balkh. He said around a dozen insurgents were also killed in the battle, which is still underway.

Durrani identified the slain commander as Halim Khanjar, police chief for the Char Bolak district.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the killing. </s> GARDEZ, Afghanistan, June 18 (Reuters) - Dozens of people were killed or wounded when as many as five suicide bombers attacked a police headquarters in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday, officials said.

The attack, claimed by the Taliban, began around 6:30 a.m. (0200 GMT) when one bomber detonated a car packed with explosives at the gate of the police headquarters in Gardez city, capital of Paktia province, said Najib Danish, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry.

Four more attackers stormed the gate after the blast, with at least two quickly killed by police. The others held out against Afghan special forces that had responded to the attack, he said.

Danish put the toll at two police killed and five wounded.

However, doctors at the city hospital said they had received the bodies of at least five police, as well as at least 30 wounded people, including 20 civilians.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, with spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid reporting more than 100 police were killed and wounded. The Islamist group often exaggerates casualty numbers in attacks against government targets and security forces. (Writing by Josh Smith; Editing by Paul Tait) </s> Dozens of people were killed or wounded when as many as five suicide bombers attacked a police headquarters in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday, officials said.

The attack, claimed by the Taliban, began around 6:30 a.m. (0200 GMT) when one bomber detonated a car packed with explosives at the gate of the police headquarters in Gardez city, capital of Paktia province, said Najib Danish, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry.

Four more attackers stormed the gate after the blast, with at least two quickly killed by police. The others held out against Afghan special forces that had responded to the attack, he said.

Danish put the toll at two police killed and five wounded.

However, doctors at the city hospital said they had received the bodies of at least five police, as well as at least 30 wounded people, including 20 civilians.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, with spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid reporting more than 100 police were killed and wounded. The Islamist group often exaggerates casualty numbers in attacks against government targets and security forces.

Insurgent groups like the Taliban and Islamic State have launched a string of attacks across Afghanistan in recent weeks.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on a mosque in Kabul on Thursday.

A massive truck bombing and later suicide attacks left hundreds dead and wounded at the end of May and beginning of June, raising political tensions for the Afghan government, which is struggling to combat rising violence and corruption.

Thousands of international troops remain in the country to train and assist Afghan security forces as well as carry out counterterrorism missions.

American defense officials say in coming weeks they will decide whether to send between 3,000 to 5,000 more troops as requested by military commanders. </s> A suicide bomber has killed six policemen and five others after exploding a device in eastern Kabul, Afghanistan.

Another 14 police officers were wounded in the bomb which was detonated amid a group of security officials monitoring protests by shopkeepers.

Wahid Mujro, a spokesman for the health ministry, said 15 wounded were treated at Kabul hospitals.

President Ashraf Ghani called the attack "inhumane" and against the tenets of Islam.

Early reports said Isis had claimed responsibility for the attack. </s> At least one person has been killed and four others wounded in a suicide bombing in the Afghan capital, Kabul, according to government officials.

The explosion took place on Friday near a vehicle belonging to foreign workers in the eastern part of the city, Najib Danish, a spokesperson for the interior ministry, said.

Al Jazeera’s Tony Birtley, reporting from Kabul, said Afghanistan’s interior ministry confirmed the attack was a suicide bombing against “foreign forces”.

“We understand that to be NATO employees who were travelling in convoy,” Birtley said.

Local media reports say one person has been killed, and nine others wounded, in the attack, Birtley added.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the explosion.

The Afghan capital has seen a spate of deadly attacks carried out by the Taliban and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group, whose affiliate in Afghanistan has grown in recent years.

In January, Taliban claimed responsibility for two separate attacks that killed nearly 130 people.

The blast comes two days after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani offered to recognise the Taliban as a legitimate political group, as part of a proposed process he said could lead to talks aimed at ending more than 16 years of war.

On Thursday, Taliban fighters killed at least six policemen in an attack at a checkpoint in southern Afghanistan, officials said. </s> (AP) – Afghan officials say at least three suicide bombers have struck two police stations in the capital, Kabul, wounding at least six people.

 Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish says the first suicide bomber struck a station in the western part of the city on Wednesday. He says there was sporadic gunfire after the blast, as a “cleanup operation” is underway. He says another two suicide bombers struck at the entrance of a police station in the city center.

 Asam, the head of the Kabul ambulance service, who only has one name, says six people have been transferred to hospitals.

 The Taliban and IS frequently target Afghanistan’s Western-backed government and security forces.
Eight suicide bombers attack two police stations in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing five people and injuring 16. ISIL claim one attack and the Taliban claim the other.