Kabul | featured news

After explosions and gun battles rock Kabul for three hours, President Karzai says order is restored. The attack is launched on the day that confirmed Cabinet members are sworn in.

KABUL — Taliban militants struck in the heart of the Afghan capital today, launching suicide attacks on key government targets in a clear sign the insurgents plan to escalate their fight as the U.S. and its allies ramp up a campaign to end the war.

Twelve Afghans died when insurgents fired two rockets into a crowded market northeast of Kabul where the head of French forces was holding a meeting with tribal elders.

President Barack Obama does not intend to decide about sending additional troops to Afghanistan until he is satisfied that the Kabul government can work effectively with the U.S., a top White House aide said Sunday.

Afghanistan's election fraud watchdog said on Sunday it is probing 567 allegations of abuse it considers serious enough to affect the outcome of the Aug 20 vote, more than double the number announced two days ago.

The first partial results from Afghanistan's election had President Hamid Karzai and his main rival running neck-and-neck on Tuesday, suggesting a close race headed for a second round.

Two U.S. soldiers also die in a separate bombing as violence grows in scattered areas of the nation. A powerful truck bomb killed at least 25 people today, more than half of them schoolchildren, in a province just south of Kabul.

U.S. air strikes earlier this month killed 140 villagers, an Afghan government investigation concluded on Saturday, putting Kabul starkly at odds with the U.S. military's account.