18 killed in suicide bomb blast near Kabul political gathering – reports

Security officials have confirmed at least eight policemen and 10 civilians were killed in a suicide bomb blast in the Afghan capital on Thursday, TOLOnews reports. An explosive device, possibly a car bomb, was detonated outside a restaurant in the Khair Khana district near Lab-e-Jar square in Kabul shortly after 1:30pm. The explosion happened near a gathering of supporters of regional leader Atta Mohammad Noor. He is the governor of the northern province of Balkh and also a leader of the mainly ethnic Tajik Jamiat-i-Islami party. Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) claimed responsibility for the attack, without giving evidence, Reuters reported.