Suicide attack and gunfight at British Council in Kabul

Taliban suicide fighters have stormed the British Council charity in the Afghan capital Kabul, killing at least nine people and wounding around another dozen.

“Eight members of the Afghan national police and one foreign soldier were killed,” said Mohammad Zahir, head of criminal investigations for Kabul police.

The siege is now said to be over. Earlier, staff were believed to be trapped inside. Shots continued to ring out from inside the compound amid reports that at least one of the attackers was still alive.

In a coordinated assault, two suicide bombers detonated their explosives outside the building before others stormed the compound.

The British Council is a state-funded agency, running mainly educational and cultural programmes.

The Taliban said it was sending two messages: one to the Afghan government and another to the British, on the day the country marks the 92nd anniversary of its independence from British rule.

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