New blast in Kabul; arrest in last week's attack
KABUL, Afghanistan - The Taliban has claimed responsibility for what it called a suicide vehicle attack that ripped through an area near a U.S. military base in Kabul on Tuesday, authorities said.
The attack came as Afghan security forces arrested a man over last week's deadly assault on key government sites in the heart of Kabul.
Afghan authorities said Tuedsay's blast injured as many as five people, but Taliban spokesman Zabullah Mujahid claimed the strike killed 25 soldiers and damaged three tanks.
The NATO-led command said the explosion occurred around 5 p.m. outside the main gate at Camp Phoenix in the outskirts of the capital. FULL POST
Around the Web: What's behind the attack in Kabul
At least five people were killed during a militant attack in downtown Kabul Monday morning. (Watch bomb explode behind correspondent in Iranian Press TV video)
Ben Arnoldy of the Christrian Science Monitor has some early analysis of the possible motives behind the attack.
“The insurgency has felt pressure from several angles in recent weeks. The United States doubled down with more troops, and is signaling a major new offensive in the south,” Arnoldy writes.
“The Afghan government, meanwhile, has begun talking up lavish new incentives of jobs and training for defectors. As for the Afghan people, which provide the oxygen for any insurgency, a poll last week found public support rebounding for Mr. Karzai.”
Photos of attack in Kabul
Explosions and gunfire shook central Kabul about 9:20 a.m. Monday in an attack that killed five and injured dozens of others. These photos show some of the destruction in the center of Kabul taken by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. The UNAMA has uploaded more photos to their Flickr site here. FULL POST
Militant attack kills 5 in heart of Kabul
Kabul, Afghanistan - An attack in which the Taliban claimed to have infiltrated key government sites in central Kabul killed five people on Monday morning, hospital officials said. Thirty-eight other people were injured, said Dr. Kabir Amiri, head of Kabul hospitals. Afghan security forces were among the casualties, he added, without clarifying.
At least two explosions and gunfire shook central Kabul about 9:20 a.m. Monday, with the Taliban saying it was conducting a militant operation. FULL POST
