Car bomb attack in Ghazni, 200 injured, 18 killed

Taliban fighters killed at least eight security personnel and six civilians in a car bomb attack in central Afghanistan that also wounded nearly 200 people, including dozens of children at a nearby school.

The suicide attack in Ghazni province on Sunday came as an all-Afghan peace conference, which includes the Taliban, began in Qatar in an effort to end years of violence and build trust between Afghan civilians and the armed group. Afghan officials said the bomb targeted the country’s main intelligence unit, National Directorate of Security (NDS).

Health officials in Ghazni said 13 adults, including eight NDS members, and a child were killed. At least 60 children attending classes in a private school near the blast site were among the 180 people wounded.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.