Suicide bomb attack on Afghan police station leaves at least 12 dead and 60 injured

Taliban claims responsibility for incident at Gardez targeting law enforcement training centre

Gardez in Afghanistan's Paktia province (Google Maps)

A Taliban suicide car bomber and gunmen attacked a provincial Afghan police headquarters on Tuesday, killing at least 12 people and wounding 60, officials and militants said.

The attack targeted a police training centre attached to the headquarters in Gardez, the capital of Paktia province, officials said.

At least two attackers were also killed, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Three officials told Reuters that the provincial police chief was among the dead, but the ministry said it could only confirm that he had been wounded.

Both civilians and security forces were among the casualties, deputy public health director Hedayatullah Hameedi said.

"At the moment the area is sealed by the Crisis Response Unit and efforts are ongoing to eliminate the terrorists," the ministry statement said.

The Taliban, seeking to reimpose strict Islamic law after their 2001 ouster by US-led forces, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Reuters