Standoff at Kabul election commission compound ends

Afghan security forces have ended a standoff with Taliban militants who attacked the main election commission’s compound in Kabul.

Local police officials said all assailants were killed in the violent election commission headquarters in Kabul on late Saturday.

Security sources said Special Forces have killed four attackers, while the Interior Ministry put the number at five.

The developments come after heavily-armed militants broke into a nearby building and opened fire at the election commission.

A Press TV correspondent says over a dozen rocket-propelled grenades were fired by Taliban militants.

The heavily fortified compound includes a series of office buildings where candidates are registered and ballot papers are sent out across the country.

The attack comes a week before presidential election in Afghanistan which the Taliban have vowed to disrupt.

They have also called on its militants to target all workers, activists, and security forces involved in the April 5 vote.

Militant attacks have already claimed the lives of several campaign workers over the past few weeks across various regions of the country.

All the candidates have been given armored vehicles and security guards.

Ten candidates are running for the presidential vote in which a successor to President Hamid Karzai will be chosen.

The elections come ahead of the planned 2014 withdrawal of US-led foreign troops from Afghanistan.

President Karzai has recently said that he “saw no good” in the US presence in Afghanistan, noting that the US-led NATO mission has failed to bring security.

The Afghan president also warned that he will not allow continued foreign presence if it means more bombs and civilian killings.