KABUL – A suicide attacker in an army uniform has been killed after entering the Afghan defence ministry in Kabul, a security source speaking anonymously told AFP, confirming local media reports Monday.
“He has not detonated, he has been shot. His suicide vest is still on him,” the source said. However, local television reported that three people had been injured in the attack.
A separate military source, also speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that three insurgents had entered the high-security building and were killed, one of whom was “possibly” a suicide bomber.
“Three insurgents have been killed. Afghan security forces are in the process of clearing the building,” the source added.
A Western security source said the Afghan defence minister Abdul Rahim Wardak was not injured in the attack.
An AFP reporter at the scene said that dozens of Afghan troops had deployed to the area and the army had blocked roads in the vicinity.
There are around 130,000 international troops in Afghanistan helping Afghan government forces fight a near ten-year insurgency led by the Taliban.
Afghan security forces are frequently targeted by insurgents — on Saturday, five foreign troops and four Afghans were killed in an attack claimed by the Taliban on an army base in Laghman province, eastern Afghanistan.