Afghanistan civilians killed, US soldiers injured in Taliban car bomb

At least four Afghans were killed and four U.S. troops lightly wounded when a car bomber attacked a US military convoy in Kabul on Friday, May 31, officials said.

The blast, which was claimed by the Taliban, occurred around 8:40 a.m. (0410 GMT) when an explosives-laden vehicle drove into the convoy that was traveling in eastern Kabul, according to interior ministry spokesperson Nasrat Rahimi.

“Unfortunately in the attack, four of our countrymen were martyred and three others wounded – they were passers-by,” Rahimi said.

“A VBIED struck a U.S. convoy in Kabul this morning,” U.S. Forces – Afghanistan spokesperson Bob Purtiman told The Defense Post.

A spokesman for Resolute Support, the U.S.-led NATO mission in Afghanistan, said four U.S. service members had suffered minor injuries.

When U.S. forces move about in Kabul, they typically travel in tall, heavily reinforced tactical vehicles that can provide good protection against bombs.

Known as MRAPs, for Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected, the vehicles are sturdy but present a very visible target.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the insurgent group was behind the attack, which he claimed to have killed “10 officers and soldiers of invading forces.”

Footage shows the aftermath of a car bomb blast in Kabul’s Qala-e-Wazir area at around 8:40am on Friday morning. Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack. pic.twitter.com/2kjRa3F4sy

— TOLOnews (@TOLOnews) May 31, 2019

The Taliban frequently exaggerate claims after attacks.

The blast came one day after an Islamic State Khorasan Province suicide bomber blew himself up outside an Afghan army military academy in Kabul, killing at least six people.

It also followed a meeting between the Taliban and Afghan opposition figures in Moscow this week that yielded no tangible results.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had proposed a nationwide ceasefire at the start of the holy month of Ramadan, but the Taliban rejected the offer and violence continues apace across the country.

With reporting from AFP