KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – A suicide car bomber attacked a NATO convoy traveling through a crowded neighborhood in Afghanistan’s capital Saturday, killing at least 12 people, including three civilian contractors for the international military force, authorities said. At least one among of the dead was a foreigner, Afghan officials said.
The Taliban quickly denied it was behind in the attack in Kabul’s Macrorayan neighborhood, though the militants increasingly have been targeting Kabul in recent weeks and often don’t claim attacks that maim civilians.
The attack struck near the private Shinozada hospital, the sound of the powerful blast roaring throughout the capital. Ambulances and Afghan security forces quickly surrounded the blast site, blocking access off from about 1 kilometer (half a mile) away.
The bombing killed at least 11 Afghan civilians and one foreigner and wounded 66, said Wahidullah Mayar, a Health Ministry spokesman. U.S. Col. Brian Tribus, a NATO spokesman, said three civilian contractors had been killed in the attack, without elaborating.
Conflicting information is common after such attacks.