IS suicide car bomb targets NATO convoy in Kabul, kills 8

KABUL, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber rammed a car filled with explosives into an armored NATO convoy in the Afghan capital Wednesday morning, killing eight Afghan civilians and wounding 28 others, including three coalition soldiers, public health officials said.

The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, which occurred at rush hour on a crowded boulevard just a few hundred yards from the U.S. Embassy and several Afghan government ministries.

The group’s affiliated news agency claimed it had killed eight American troops, but officials of the U.S.-led NATO force here said none had been killed, and that all injuries to coalition troops were “non-life-threatening.” However, several injured civilians were reported to be in critical condition.

The explosion shattered glass in numerous buildings and left several disabled and damaged vehicles stranded in the busy thoroughfare.

A smouldering, partially crumpled minivan at the site was reported to be the suicide vehicle.

The Islamic State has claimed numerous attacks in the capital in the past year, most recently a devastating assault March 8 on a large military hospital here, which left more than 49 people dead. The assailants entered the high-security compound disguised as medical personnel.

Wednesday’s attack also followed a period of repeated attacks by rival Taliban insurgents, who continued their aggressive campaign against the Afghan state all winter and last week announced they were launching a new spring offensive as well.

Last year saw record numbers of both civilian and military casualties in the protracted insurgent conflict, which has stretched Afghan forces thin with the additional presence of ISIS fighters in the past two years.