Police: 12 dead in Kabul UN attack

Taliban militants wearing suicide vests stormed a guest house used by UN staff in the heart of the Afghan capital early today, killing 12 people – including six UN staff – in the biggest in a series of attacks intended to undermine next month’s presidential run-off election.

One of the six UN dead was an American, the US Embassy said. A Taliban spokesman claimed responsibility for the early morning assaults, which also included rocket attacks at the presidential palace and the city’s main luxury hotel.