'Taliban' militants storm appeals court in Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan

A group of suspected Taliban suicide bombers and gunmen have stormed Tuesday a provincial appeals court in the province of Wardak, some 40 kilometers southeast of the capital Kabul, leaving two policemen and four attackers dead, Afghan officials said.

According to provincial police chief Gen. Khalil Andarabi, four suicide bombers wearing police uniforms attacked the court compound at 11.00 a.m. local time (0630GMT).

“The assault began after a suicide bomber detonated his explosives at the front gate of the court which was ensued by gunfights between security guards and the assailants,” Andarabi told Anadolu Agency.

Security forces repelling the attack gunned down the remaining three attackers.

“The attackers who made their way to the compound were soon gunned down. Unfortunately, two of our policemen who were at the front gate lost their lives,” added Andarabi.

Three policemen were also wounded in the incident. 

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack yet. But Afghan officials blamed Taliban insurgents for Tuesday's attack.

Taliban militants have recently stepped up their attacks on establishments related to the Afghan judicial system. In a similar attack, at least four people were killed and more than 50 people were wounded after a suicide car bomb attack on the Afghan Ministry of Justice in the capital Kabul last week.

Four people were killed and scores injured when a suicide bomber detonated his truck packed with explosives in front of a provincial council office in the southern Zabul province on Monday.

In April, in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, the Taliban's attack on an attorney's office left 10 dead, including four prosecutors, while 66 others were wounded.

Despite peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban militants underway in China, the Taliban group has intensified their attacks as part of their spring offensive in Afghanistan.