6 Afghan police killed in Panjshir suicide bombing

At least six police were killed while several civilians were wounded Thursday evening in a suicide bombing in eastern Afghan province of Panjshir, the Interior Ministry said.

"One suicide bomber detonated his explosive-laden sedan in security checkpoint in Dalan Sang, the main entrance of the Panjshir province at around 5:00 p.m. local time, leaving six police officers killed," the ministry said in a statement.

Several civilians were wounded in the blast. The injured were shifted to hospitals, it said.

Government troops cordoned off the area shortly after the blast.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a purported Taliban spokesman, claimed the responsibility for the attack. The Taliban insurgent group has intensified attacks in spring and summer known as the fighting season in the war-torn country.

Unofficial sources said that 12 people were killed and more than 20 others were wounded in the attack in the province, 200 km north of national capital of Kabul.

The Taliban, who ruled the country before they were ousted by a U.S.-led invasion in late 2001, renewed armed insurgency, staging ambush and suicide attacks, killing combatants as well as civilians.

More than 2,900 civilians were killed and nearly 5,700 were wounded in conflicts and Taliban-led attacks in the war-torn country last year, according to official figures.