Taliban bombing in capital leaves 6 dead

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN » The Taliban set off a powerful bomb in downtown Kabul on Monday, killing at least six people and wounding more than a hundred, and sending a cloud of smoke billowing over the Afghan capital.

At least 26 children were among the wounded, many of whom were cut by shards of glass when the bomb shattered nearby windows, government spokesman Feroz Bashari said. He said 105 people were hurt.

An education ministry spokeswoman, Nooria Nazhat, later raised the number of students who were slightly wounded to 51, from two schools.

The Taliban claimed the attack, which came as the insurgents were holding their latest round of talks with U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad in the Gulf state of Qatar, where they have a political office.

The attack ended nearly 10 hours after it began with all five attackers dead, according to Interior Ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi.

Two police, a child, a private security guard and two passers-by were killed in the attack that began with a powerful car bomb, followed by a series of smaller explosions and a day-long gun battle, said Rahimi.

The Italian-run Emergency Hospital in Kabul — one of the largest hospitals in the Afghan capital treating war victims — said in a statement that it had received two bodies, including a child. Dozens more injured were treated, many of them later released.

The insurgents struck during the morning commute, and ambulance sirens wailed across the downtown area.