Truck bomb strikes foreign guesthouse in Kabul

By REUTERS
August 01, 2016

KABUL: A powerful truck bomb struck a guesthouse popular with foreigners in Kabul early Monday, a security source and local media said, but there were no immediate reports of casualties.

"A truck packed with explosives struck the entrance of Northgate guesthouse," the source told AFP.

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The guesthouse was not immediately reachable by telephone. Northgate, close to the US-run Bagram air base north of Kabul, is a heavily guarded compound with blast walls and watchtowers.

The Taliban said the truck bomb at a guest house belonging to "American invaders" paved the way for their fighters to enter the facility with rocket-propelled grenades and small arms.

The powerful explosion, which was preceded by a power outage, occurred around 1:30 am (2100 GMT) and was felt across the city.

The attack comes more than a week after 80 people were killed in twin bombings in the Afghan capital, the deadliest attack in the city in 15 years.

That assault was claimed by the Islamic State group, which is making gradual inroads into Afghanistan, challenging the Taliban on their own turf.

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