9 killed in Afghan parliament attack

Taliban militants launched a brazen assault on the Afghan parliament yesterday, triggering gunfire and explosions and sending lawmakers scurrying for cover in an attack that killed two civilians, including a child, AFP reports from Kabul. The raid came as the Afghan president's nominee for the crucial post of defence minister was to be introduced in parliament and ended two hours later with the killing of all seven attackers, including a suicide car bombing.
The assault on such a high-profile target in downtown Kabul raises fresh questions about security as Afghan forces battle a resurgent Taliban for the first time without the aid of NATO forces, who ended their combat mission in December. "First a car bomb detonated on the main road near the parliament building, then a group of attackers entered a building in front of parliament," Kabul police spokesman Ebadullah Karimi told AFP.
The insurgents were repelled after failing to enter the parliament but took up position in a partially constructed building nearby, he said. Officials said two civilians, a woman and a child, were killed in the attack, which left a thick plume of smoke hanging over the parliament complex and tore a huge crater in an adjoining street. Deputy interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish said there were seven attackers and the health ministry reported 31 people, including five women and a child, wounded.
Dramatic television footage of the moment the first explosion struck showed pandemonium and screams inside parliament, with Speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi sitting in his chair, calmly telling lawmakers "it's an electrical issue".

 

9 killed in Afghan parliament attack

Taliban militants launched a brazen assault on the Afghan parliament yesterday, triggering gunfire and explosions and sending lawmakers scurrying for cover in an attack that killed two civilians, including a child, AFP reports from Kabul. The raid came as the Afghan presidents nominee for the crucial post of defence minister was to be introduced in parliament and ended two hours later with the killing of all seven attackers, including a suicide car bombing. The assault on such a high-profile target in downtown Kabul raises fresh questions about security as Afghan forces battle a resurgent Taliban for the first time without the aid of NATO forces, who ended their combat mission in December. First a car bomb detonated on the main road near the parliament building, then a group of attackers entered a building in front of parliament, Kabul police spokesman Ebadullah Karimi told AFP. The insurgents were repelled after failing to enter the parliament but took up position in a partially constructed building nearby, he said. Officials said two civilians, a woman and a child, were killed in the attack, which left a thick plume of smoke hanging over the parliament complex and tore a huge crater in an adjoining street. Deputy interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish said there were seven attackers and the health ministry reported 31 people, including five women and a child, wounded. Dramatic television footage of the moment the first explosion struck showed pandemonium and screams inside parliament, with Speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi sitting in his chair, calmly telling lawmakers its an electrical issue.