Suicide attack in Afghan capital kills 15 cadets

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) - At least 15 cadets of the Aghan National Army were killed Saturday in a Taliban-claimed suicide attack in capital Kabul, security officials said.

The Defense Ministry confirmed that a bus carrying the cadets was hit by a suicide bomber near the Marshal Fahim National Defense University on Saturday afternoon.

Maj. Gen. Dawlat Waziri, spokesman of the Ministry, told Anadolu Agency that the suicide bomber walked towards the bus and detonated himself, leaving 15 cadets dead and four injured in the Qambar Square area of the city.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack on their website, labelling the surge in suicide car bombings and armed assaults as the "revenge of 750 bombs" in clear reference to 751 air raids conducted by the U.S. forces against suspected militants in September alone.

Since Wednesday, at least 200 people have been killed in five other deadly attacks across the country claimed by the Taliban and pro-Daesh rebels.

The Afghan forces, on the other hand, claimed to have inflicted similar casualties on the militants.

There has been an evident surge in terrorist attacks and counterterrorism operations since August when U.S. President Donald Trump announced a new war strategy for Afghanistan in the war that has entered its 17th year.