Kabul Attacks 'Are Retaliation'

A series of attacks in the Afghan capital Kabul were in retaliation for Koran burnings, a US Marine urination video and the Kandahar massacre, the Taliban has reportedly claimed.

The country's interior ministry said a total of 17 militants were killed and two others were captured. One police officer died in the fighting.

The co-ordinated strikes on Sunday targeted Nato's headquarters, the city's parliament building and a number of diplomatic residences - including the British and US embassies.

There were also attacks outside of Kabul, with two suicide bombers targeting an airfield used by Nato in Jalalabad, while a police station was attacked in the town of Gardez, 75 miles south of the capital.

President Hamid Karzai was reported to be under lockdown and MPs have been among those fighting back against the onslaught in Kabul, with some standing with Afghan forces to shoot at insurgents.

"These attacks are the beginning of the spring offensive and we planned them for months," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has been quoted as saying. Read More