Dozens killed in Taliban attack on military base

At least 45 people died in a brazen attack by the Taliban on a military base in Afghanistan, local officials said Tuesday. According to the Afghan intelligence agency that runs the facility, a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden Humvee into the main building on the base, which is located outside the capital of Maidan Wardak province, about 25 miles east of Kabul. The attackers managed to get past security guards who opened fire on the vehicle at the front gate. Four other militants attacked soldiers after the explosion, but all four were killed.

Khawanin Sultani, a provincial council member, said the explosion collapsed the building, accounting for the majority of the casualties. Provincial officials said 70 people were injured and 45 died, while the National Directorate of Security intelligence service said 36 members of the military were killed and 58 others wounded. There were about 150 military personnel on the base at the time of the attack. The intelligence compound also served as a training facility for a pro-government militia and housed some of the best-trained soldiers in the country.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack within hours. The extremist group has persisted with violence even as it continues peace talks with the United States and other Western nations. In a separate statement, the Taliban said it was meeting with U.S. representatives in Qatar on Monday and Tuesday to talk about “ending the invasion of Afghanistan.”

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani condemned the bombing and ordered an investigation, saying the attackers “killed and wounded a number of honest sons of this homeland who were defending their country and protecting their people.”