KABUL: A suicide bomber killed two Afghan guards outside a foreign-run military compound in the main diplomatic area of the Afghan capital, Kabul on Wednesday, Interior Ministry officials said.
Taliban quickly calimed responsibility for the attack.
“The bomber killed himself in front of the compound. Two people were killed and two more were wounded, all Afghan guards,” said Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danesh.
Dozens of police swarmed to the area, where shattered glass from cars lay on the ground, and cordoned it off.
It was not immediately clear which foreign forces run the compound, although Afghan security officials said it is US-run.
A spokeswoman at the U.S. embassy in Kabul said its security team was investigating the blast.
The Taliban took responsibility for the attack, which happened at 0940 ist, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters by telephone from an undisclosed location.
Embassy sirens sounded and ambulances could be heard after the blast, which happened in the area where the U.S. and British embassies and the headquarters of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) are located.
Violence is intensifying across Afghanistan ahead of the planned withdrawal of most foreign troops by the end of 2014, sparking concerns over how the 350,000-strong Afghan security forces will be able to manage. (Reuters)