Obama, Karzai 'reaffirm' support for peace talks with Taliban despite Kabul attack

President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai have 'reaffirmed' their support for holding talks with the Taliban, despite an attack in Kabul.

Obama and Karzai agreed in a video conference that a peace process was the surest way to end the violence, the White House said.

According to the BBC, they also reiterated their backing for a Taliban office in Doha.

Three security guards and four militants died in the assault on the presidential palace and a CIA station.

Karzai was inside the palace at the time, but the target appears to have been the nearby Ariana Hotel, which houses the CIA station.

According to the report, the incident happened just days after representatives of the Taliban opened an office in Qatari capital for starting negotiations about a peace process.

White House spokesman Jay Carney later said Obama and Karzai have both reaffirmed that an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and reconciliation process is the surest way to end violence and ensure lasting stability in Afghanistan and the region, the report added.