Militants attack military base in Kabul, Afghanistan
Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN)Five militants targeted a military base in Kabul Monday, just two days after an attacker driving an ambulance packed with explosives killed more than 100 in the Afghan capital.
Monday's assault started before daylight at 5 a.m. local time when a blast was detonated at the entrance of the military base, near the Marshal Fahim Military Academy in the west of Kabul, Dawlat Waziri, spokesman for the Ministry of Defense told CNN.
The assault dragged on for five hours during which two suicide attackers detonated explosives. Another two were killed by the Afghan National Army and one was detained alive, Waziri said.
Five Afghan army personnel were killed and a further 10 were wounded in the attack, he added.
Afghan security personnel arrive at the site of an attack at the Marshal Fahim academy in Kabul, Afghanistan Monday, Jan. 29, 2018.
ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack through its media arm, the Amaq News Agency, but didn't provided any evidence to support the claim. The site reported "an immersive attack by the Islamic State fighters targeted the Military Academy in Kabul city."
However, that differs from what authorities told CNN, that the attack did not take place at the military academy, but at a military base near it.
ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack though haven't provided any evidence to back the claim.
The Marshal Fahim National Defense University shares the site with two other military facilities, including a NATO base which houses instructors for the academy, according to spokesman Shah Hussain Murtazawi.
The military complex, which is located in the 5th police district of Kabul, is near the site of a suicide bombing in October 2017.
Military base
Map data ©2018 Google
Bloody week
The Taliban claimed responsibility for Saturday's attack that saw at least 103 killed when an explosion-packed ambulance drove through a checkpoint.
Another 235 people were injured, including 30 police officers, Kabul police chief Basir Mojahid said. It comes a week after militants stormed a Kabul hotel and killed scores in a 12-hour standoff.
Ambulance packed with explosives kills dozens
In that incident, which was claimed by the Pakistan-based Haqqani network, Afghan authorities say the attackers killed at least 18 people, including 12 foreigners, during the 12-hour standoff with security forces. At least four assailants also were killed.
Elsewhere in the war-ravaged country, ISIS militants attacked the offices of British aid agency Save the Children in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad on Wednesday, killing at least four people and injuring dozens in a 10-hour battle, according to local authorities. All five attackers were killed.
Carnage in Kabul adds to US challenges in Afghanistan
CNN's Karen Smith and Samantha Beech contributed to this report.
News Courtesy: www.cnn.com
