At Least 80 Killed in Blast Near Embassies in Afghan Capital Explosion strikes near U.S. military headquarters in Kabul’s Green Zone By Jessica Donati and Ehsanullah Amiri
https://www.wsj.com/articles/large-explosion-rocks-afghanistans-capital-kabul-near-foreign-embassies-1496206923
KABUL—A bomb exploded near heavily guarded embassies and military bases in the Afghan capital on Wednesday, killing at least 80 people and wounding more than 300 others, many as they headed to work on foot or in buses, the interior ministry and witnesses said.
The death toll from the blast, which officials described as a suicide attack, was expected to rise as more bodies were discovered in the debris and the critically injured were transferred to hospitals.
The Taliban, Afghanistan’s most powerful insurgency, denied responsibility for the bombing, which occurred as the White House considers a Pentagon recommendation to send an additional 3,000 U.S. troops to the Central Asian country to advise and assist its military.
There was no immediate response to the blast from the local branch of Islamic State, which has gained a foothold in the country since thousands of foreign troops were withdrawn from the country in 2014.
In the past year, the Islamic State affiliate has moved from its redoubt in the east of the country and carried out large attacks in the capital. Along with other Afghan militant groups, it has urged an escalation of attacks during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, now in its fifth day.
Wednesday’s blast rocked the capital, sending a mushroom cloud high above the city.
“I was in the makeup room preparing for my morning show. A huge boom shook the room and everything collapsed. It was terrible,” said Taban Ibraz, a presenter for Afghan television network 1TV, located near the blast.
“The entire studio, newsroom and offices have been destroyed.”
An employee of Roshan, a mobile phone company, said many of his colleagues were killed and wounded in the blast.
“The two floors of office building collapsed completely as a result of the explosion,” he said. “Then office’s generators caught fire as well.”
The explosion struck near the entrance of the so-called Green Zone, which encompasses the U.S. military headquarters and the American embassy here.
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