NATO convoy attacked in Kabul, civilians wounded

An Afghan policeman keeps watch at the site of a car bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, on September 24, 2017. (REUTERS)

KABUL: A suicide bomber targeting a NATO convoy wounded three Afghan civilians in Kabul on Sunday morning without causing casualties among Danish troops on board, officials said.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the bombing in the west of the Afghan capital.
“Around 11:02 a.m., a suicide car bomber detonated himself, targeted a convoy of foreign forces near Afshar neighborhood of Kabul city,” Najib Danish, Interior Ministry spokesman, told AFP.
“Unfortunately as a result of the attack, three Afghan civilians were wounded.”
Bill Salvin, a spokesman for NATO’s Resolute Support train and assist mission, confirmed the attack had targeted a military convoy.
“There are no Resolute Support casualties as a result of the explosion, and a team from Resolute Support is on the scene to recover the vehicle,” Salvin said, adding that “there is no impact to Resolute Support operations.”
In a statement on Twitter Sunday, Taliban insurgents claimed to have killed and injured up to 16 American soldiers in the attack. The militants routinely exaggerate claims.
NATO has nearly 13,000 troops in Afghanistan including 8,400 Americans, with an additional 3,000 troops expected to be deployed in support.
The alliance’s mission in Afghanistan is focused on training, advising and supervision of domestic security forces to counter the Taliban insurgents — who oppose the Western-backed government of President Ashraf Ghani — and Daesh.
On Sept. 13, a suicide bomber killed three people including a policeman and wounded five others after blowing himself up near a cricket stadium in Kabul.
Past suicide attacks on such convoys have usually caused casualties among nearby civilians while leaving their targets relatively unharmed. NATO personnel now often travel even short distances in Kabul by helicopter.
The Taliban, which often exaggerates casualty estimates from its attacks, said 16 Americans had been killed and three armoured vehicles destroyed. It said it was preparing to step up the pace of attacks on foreign forces in Afghanistan.
NATO personnel travelling by road normally travel in convoys of three heavily armoured personnel carriers which can resist all but the heaviest explosions.