Afghanistan truck bomb strikes near embassy row

World Today

In Afghanistan, a deadly bombing has rocked Kabul.

A truck bomb near the presidential palace killed at least 90 and wounded hundreds.

CGTN’s Catherine James reports from the blast site.
Follow Catherine James on Twitter @cathjam

A truck packed with explosives was detonated on a main road in the city. The bomb was apparently intended for the international embassies behind the concrete blast walls lining the road. Instead it has devastated the local population.

Despite the massive security apparatus surrounding the German embassy, the blast wave of the truck bomb managed to inflict extensive damage. Scores of cars were rendered into mangled metal, these were still being removed from the scene five hours later.

At least one member of the German embassy staff was killed. He was an Afghan security guard, underlining again that it is mostly Afghans who bear the brunt of these attacks.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack. However, accusations abounded on social media against the Afghan government for incompetence and impotence. The loss of faith in the government is one of the aims of the insurgency, and in that regard, they seem to be succeeding.

How the government responds to this latest blow is yet to play out.