Death toll in Kabul attack rises to 64

The death toll in the deadly suicide bombing in the Afghan capital has risen to 64 with 347 others injured, the interior ministry said on Wednesday.

The dead in the Tuesday morning attack also included military personnel and civilians, a ministry spokesman said. Earlier reports put the number of dead at 28 and injured at 327.

The attack took place when a Taliban suicide bomber rammed a truck bomb into the wall of a compound belonging to the national intelligence agency in Pul-e-Mahmood Khan locality.

Two armed militants entered the building and took on the security forces shortly after the blast.

Several elite security personnel, who were in charge of providing security for high-ranking officials, were receiving training inside the building when the attack occurred.

A total of 54 vehicles parked around the site were destroyed by the massive blast, the spokesman said.

Most civilian victims were affected by shrapnel and flying glasses as the blast destroyed several buildings around the site and shattered the windows of nearby business district.

More than 3,540 civilians were killed and over 7,450 injured in violence in Afghanistan last year, according to a UN report released in February.

--IANS

mr/