Taliban car bomb hits army base in eastern Afghanistan

A suicide car bomb detonated near an army base in the eastern Afghan province of Khost on Friday, killing one soldier and wounding several before the army repelled an attack on the base by four gunmen, the district chief said.

The blast, 50 meters from the base, was heard several miles away and damaged several shops, homes and a school, Akbar Zadran, the chief of Sabari district, told Reuters news agency.

Four gunmen attacked the base but were killed after an hour-long gun battle, Zadran said.

In a statement, the Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and said it had caused heavy casualties.

The Islamist movement is known to exaggerate casualties caused by its operations.

The attack follows an assault on a military air base in Khost province last week, and comes just ahead of the normal start of the spring fighting season, when Taliban insurgents and the Afghan army step up operations.

The Afghan government controls less than 60% of the country after territorial gains by the insurgents since NATO-led forces ended their combat operations at the end of 2014.