Attack on US convoy kills 8 Afghans, wounds 3 US soldiers

Afghan officials say that at least four people have been killed in a suicide car bomb attack in the capital Kabul.

Security forces stand by after a suicide bomber detonated his payload near government offices in Kabul, Afghanistan. AP

KABUL:   A suicide car bomber struck a U.S. military convoy in the Afghan capital on Wednesday, killing at least eight Afghan civilians and wounding three U.S. service members, officials said.

Najib Danish, deputy spokesman for the Interior Ministry, said another 25 Afghan civilians were wounded in the morning rush-hour attack near the U.S. Embassy, which destroyed several civilian vehicles

U.S. Navy Cpt. Bill Salvin, a military spokesman, confirmed that three soldiers were wounded in the attack.

No one immediately claimed the attack, but the Taliban announced the start of their annual spring offensive on Friday, and have repeatedly targeted Afghan and U.S. forces in the past.

Afghan forces have struggled to contain the Taliban since the U.S. and NATO officially concluded their combat mission at the end of 2014, switching to a support and counterterrorism role. The U.S. has more than 8,000 troops in the country.