Near-simultaneous Taliban suicide bombings and an hours-long shootout with Afghan security forces left at least 22 people dead and over 100 wounded in Kabul on Wednesday – a stark reminder of the militants' ability to stage large-scale and complex attacks in the country's capital.
The brazen noon-time attacks also underscored the challenges the government continues to face as it grapples with the 15-year-long insurgency and struggles to improve security for ordinary Afghans.
In one of the twin attacks, a suicide car bomber rammed his vehicle into the gates of a sprawling police compound in western Kabul. The explosion was followed by a gunbattle between security forces and several gunmen who stormed into the complex, said Najib Danish, deputy spokesman for the Interior Ministry.
Thick black smoke rose above the grounds, and several rounds of small-arms fire and subsequent explosions were heard from inside, according the Mohammad Naser, a shopkeeper who has a store nearby. Dozens of windows were shattered on surrounding houses and shops, he added.
The compound includes Kabul's so-called Sixth Police Station and is located next to the country's military school, which might have been the original target, along with cadets attending classes there.
Hours later, the gunbattle ended with all the attackers killed, said Sadiq Muradi of the Kabul police chief's office. Security forces were carrying out a clean-up operation following the attack, he added.
Wahid Mujro, the public health ministry spokesman, said 15 people were killed in the police compound.
The second attack took place in eastern Kabul where a suicide bomber on foot detonated his explosives outside the offices of the country's intelligence service, killing one person. A total of 104 people were wounded in both attacks, Mujro said.
In a message to media, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for both attacks. It was not immediately clear how many gunmen were involved in the attack on the Kabul police complex.
"We were in the dining room, eating lunch when a loud explosion happened. I couldn't see anything for a while," said Manizha, a policewoman who like many women in Afghanistan uses only one name.
She said she managed to escape from the compound as the gunbattle continued inside.
President Ashraf Ghani issued a statement condemning the attacks, saying that "terrorists and their alien masters once again tried to create an atmosphere of terror and fear in Kabul."
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