Attack raises Afghan policing questions
The suicide bomb attack in Kabul Tuesday underlined that the Taliban are still very capable of causing substantial carnage in the Afghan capital – months after promises that security would be tightened.
After the last such attack in Kabul three months ago, in which 14 people were killed in an attack on a hotel and shopping center, there were promises that security in the capital would be improved. And for a while there were no major incidents. But this attack will revive anxiety about the ability of Afghan security forces to make the capital – and important military and government installations – safe.
Among the questions bound to be raised: did the suicide vehicle pass through any checkpoints? Was there any intelligence about the planned attack? And are the Afghan National Police capable of providing security in Kabul – or anywhere else in Afghanistan?
That final question is the one that NATO commanders return to time and again.
Read the full post from CNN's Tim Lister at the Security Brief on This Just In
Images from the scene of the Kabul suicide attack
Investigators inspect the site of a suicide attack in Kabul targeting NATO troops that killed at least 18 people near the parliament buildings. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they had targeted "invading NATO forces." (Photos courtesy Getty and the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan)
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18 killed in Afghan suicide attack
[Update: 9:26 a.m. ET] A Canadian service member was one of the six NATO-led troops who died in the suicide bombing attack, Canadian forces confirmed.
Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) - Five U.S. service members were among the 18 people killed in a suicide car bombing Tuesday in Kabul, a U.S. defense official confirmed. (See images from the scene of the attack)
Women, children and a NATO-led soldier also were killed when the bomb exploded near a registration center for Afghan Army recruits, officials said.
The attack occurred near an International Security Assistance Force military convoy on a busy road, ISAF said. Full story
