Kabul, Afghanistan. What was at first reported as a “car bomb” by American press, now turns out to be a truck bomb that has killed over 80 and injured over 350 persons in a terrorist attack inside the Afghan capital of Kabul. No details yet on the number of Americans killed.
The powerful truck bomb has hit a diplomatic area in the Afghan capital of Kabul, killing at least 80 people and injuring 350. It was detonated near Zanbaq Square in the heavily fortified zone, with civilians said to be the main casualties.There are many key buildings in the area, including the presidential palace and a number of embassies, including the British.
The morning rush-hour blast created a massive crater and blew out windows and doors hundreds of metres away. Afghanistan’s Taliban have denied carrying out the attack. There has been no word so far from ISIS.
Local Police say the bomb went off at about 08:25 local time during rush hour at the diplomatic quarter. Eye witnesses stated makeshift ambulances carried wounded people away from the scene, as frantic relatives gathered both at the cordoned-off perimeter of the blast site and later at hospitals to try to locate loved ones injured & killed in the terrorist attack.
More than 50 vehicles were destroyed in the blast that came from a giant sewage tanker, turned into a huge explosive device,a CIA source indicated it was packed with more than 1,500kg of explosives. Questions are already being asked about how the vehicle could have penetrated such a heavily fortified area, with its 3m (10ft) high blast walls, to carry out the deadliest attack in the capital in years.
When announcing the start of their major spring offensive last month, the Taliban said their main focus would be foreign forces, targeting them with a mix of conventional, guerrilla, insider and suicide attacks.The US has about 8,400 troops in Afghanistan, with another 5,000 from Nato allies as an occupation force.
The Pentagon and NATO headquarters in Brussels, have reportedly pressed President Donald Trump to send 25,000 more NATO troops back to the country to try to “occupy and pacify.” More than a third of the country is now said to be outside of Afghan government control.