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Taliban militants launch attack on Afghan capital

pioneer.com

AP | Kabul

Taliban militants struck in the heart of the Afghan capital today, launching suicide attacks at key government targets including the presidential palace and locked security forces in running gun battles, which left nine people, including four attackers dead.



The brazen strike in the city was a clear sign the insurgents plan to escalate their fight as the US and its allies ramp up their own campaign to end the war. At least 40 people were wounded, officials said.



After a series of blasts and more than three hours of ensuing gunfights outside several ministries and inside a shopping mall, President Hamid Karzai said security had been restored to the capital, though search operations continued amid reports that attackers were hiding in the city.



It was the biggest attack in the capital since Oct. 28 when gunmen with automatic weapons and suicide vests stormed a guest house used by UN staff, killing at least 11 people including three UN staff.



Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told The Associated Press that 20 armed militants, including some with suicide vests, had entered Kabul to target the presidential palace and other government buildings in the center of the capital.



Explosions and heavy machine-gun fire rattled the city for hours. Debris was strewn on the streets, which were quickly abandoned by crowds that normally fill the area. Defense Ministry spokesman Gen Mohammad Zahir Azimi said a child and a policeman were killed. The Ministry of Public Health later said five people - a civilian and four security forces - were killed and 30 others wounded.



Two suicide bombers later detonated their explosives and Afghan troops killed two other militants in the mall, Bashary said. He said other militants were holed up on the top floor, but officials later said the building had been cleared.



NATO, which said international forces worked with Afghan forces to areas of the capital, said Afghan troops had killed at least two armed insurgents while clearing a building at a shopping center.



Elsewhere in the capital, Afghan troops also surrounded an area housing a well-known cinema and opened fire on militants believed hiding inside. A police officer at the site, Ghulam Ghaus, said the fighting ended after the last suicide attacker inside blew himself up. It wasn't clear how many others were in the building.