Afghan Government Building Attacked

Taliban insurgents wearing Afghan police uniforms and suicide vests shot their way into a traffic police building in Afghanistan's eastern Khost province, near the border with Pakistan. At least three police officers were killed in the early stages of the attack. Two explosions were heard in the beginning of the attack, and it seems at least one of the attackers detonated his vest as the insurgents took control of the building. Afghan troops then surrounded the building in an attempt to bring the standoff to an end. This latest attack comes a day after a suicide bomber killed six medical students at a Kabul military hospital—part of a recent spike in violence attributed to the Taliban’s announced “spring offensive.” Despite the presence of some 150,000 foreign troops, violence in Afghanistan has reached its highest level since the Taliban was ousted in 2001.