![\"_92411070_jens\"](\"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/92411070_jens.png\")
<\/p>\nA suicide bomber has killed four people inside Bagram air base, the largest US military facility in Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
At least 14 others were wounded in the blast, carried out near a dining facility. The Taliban said one of their fighters carried out the attack.<\/p>\n
The attack is a major security breach in one of the best protected places in Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
Bagram has been targeted by militants in the past but this is the first time a bomb has exploded inside the base.<\/p>\n
Bagram, just north of the capital Kabul, has been used as the main military base and airfield by the US-led forces and Nato over the past 14 years.<\/p>\n
A local government spokesman said the attacker entered the base early in the morning and was standing in a queue with Afghan labourers reporting for duty when he detonated his vest.<\/p>\n
Abdul Wahid Sediqi told AFP: “We don’t know the identity of victims yet but the attacker was one of the Afghan labourers working there.”<\/p>\n
The airbase was while people gathered to celebrate Veteran’s Day.<\/p>\n
Bagram is a heavily guarded military base with many layers of security and protection. The outermost layer is guarded by Afghan forces and second and more inner layers of security are guarded by US forces.<\/p>\n
High walls, security cameras, and watch towers on the outer perimeters and inside the base are just some of its formidable security measures. A surveillance balloon also watches the entire area.
\nEvery person entering the base is searched, in many cases escorted, and must have a pre-arranged meeting with someone inside.<\/p>\n
The security measures serve not only to protect military personnel on the base, but also to safeguard expensive state of the art military tools, including fighter jets and unmanned aerial technology.<\/p>\n
US presidents visiting the country fly into Bagram, one of the most heavily guarded places in Afghanistan, because it is seen as more secure than landing in Kabul.<\/p>\n
General John W Nicholson, US Army commander in Afghanistan, said in a statement:<\/p>\n
”[To] the family and friends of those wounded in today’s attack, let me assure you they are receiving the best care possible, and we will keep them in our thoughts today.”<\/p>\n
He said the incident was being investigated but did not disclose the nationalities of the casualties.
\nNato Secretary General expressed his condolences on Twitter:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the attack had been planned over four months and had inflicted “heavy casualties on US invaders”.<\/p>\n
Last December, a Taliban suicide bomber riding a motorbike killed six US soldiers in a village near Bagram in one of last year’s deadliest attacks on foreign troops.<\/p>\n
The attack on Bagram comes just a day after the German consulate in the city of Mazar-e-Sharif in northern Afghanistan was hit by a Taliban suicide bomb blast that killed six civilians and wounded some 120 others.<\/p>\n
The Taliban said on Friday the attacks were carried out in retaliation for a recent coalition air strike in Kunduz which reportedly killed some 30 civilians.
\nCorrespondents say the Taliban are stepping up their attacks before the onset of winter.<\/p>\n
‘No confidence’
\nMeanwhile, MPs in the Afghan parliament have dismissed the minister of foreign affairs, public works and social affairs for failing to spend development money allocated to them.<\/p>\n
A BBC correspondent in Kabul says if the money is not spent, it will have to be refunded to the foreign donors.<\/p>\n
Mr Ghani’s national unity government has been plagued by in-fighting since it was formed in 2014.
\nMinisters in Afghanistan are nominated by the president, and several more are due to face confidence votes by MPs.
\n–<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A suicide bomber has killed four people inside Bagram air base, the largest US military facility in Afghanistan. At least 14 others were wounded in the blast, carried out near a dining facility. The Taliban said one of their fighters carried out the attack. The attack is a major security breach in one of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[107],"tags":[13548],"yoast_head":"\n