Kabul:
Nine people were killed today when three attackers armed with suicide vests and machine-guns stormed a police station in the heart of the Afghan capital Kabul, officials said.
The militants at least one of whom was in an army uniform got into a compound housing the police station in the crowded main central market area near the Afghan presidential palace, defence ministry and other official buildings.
Five civilians were among the dead along with three policemen and one officer from Afghanistan's intelligence agency, interior ministry spokesman Najib Nikzad said. Ten civilians and two police were injured.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, the latest embarrassing breach at a supposedly secure location in Kabul, which comes weeks before limited foreign troop withdrawals are due to start from Afghanistan.
One of the attackers detonated his explosives at the entrance to the compound, allowing his two accomplices into the building, the interior ministry said.
Once inside, they fired at police, sparking a gun battle which lasted for around two hours before the duo were encountered.
The finance ministry said two of its employees who worked nearby were among those who died in the station attack.