By NNN-PTI,
Kabul : Terrorists rammed an explosives- laden car into the heavily fortified Indian embassy’s gates in the Afghanistan capital today, killing at least 41 people, including four Indian nationals, among them a senior diplomat and defence attache.
Defence Attache Brigadier R D Mehta and Counsellor Venkateswara Rao were killed when the suicide bomber targeted the embassy during the morning rush hour, Indian ambassador Jayant Prasad, who escaped unhurt in the bombing, said.
Rao’s body was flung over the roof by the impact of the explosion that blew off the embassy’s gates and outer structure and damaged buildings inside the compound. Two Indian embassy vehicles were also damaged, an official said, adding over 140 people were injured in the blast.
The other two Indians killed in the attack were identified as ITBP personnel Ajai Pathania and Roop Singh.
Wounded people lay on the road wailing for help amid blood and severed limbs after the blast as a cloud of dust and smoke billowed from the site.
A fifth deceased employee of the Indian Embassy Niamutullah, was a local Afghan, officials, said adding three Indians were also injured in the blast. Among the dead were seven Afghan guards deployed at the mission.
India said it is rushing a high-level team, headed by Nalin Surie, Secretary (West) to Kabul to assess the “emergency” situation there, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in New Delhi.
Afghan Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta visited the embassy soon after the attack suspected to be carried out by the Taliban.