A spokesman for the Taliban asserted responsibility for the midday attack, which injured more than 50 people when the bomber rammed his Toyota sedan into an Italian military convoy at a traffic circle near the city's international airport, NATO and Afghan authorities said. The blast, which could be heard across the city, left bodies strewn among market stalls and vehicles incinerated in the streets.
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said in Rome later that it would be best for international troops to leave Afghanistan soon, the Associated Press reported. But he added that Italy is "dealing with an international problem" that Afghanistan could not be left to address by itself. "That would betray the agreement and trust with the other countries" in the mission, he said.
The third suicide bombing in the capital since mid-August underscored the growing audacity and reach of the insurgents during a season of political turmoil here. In recent weeks, as findings of election fraud have emerged, Afghans have grown increasingly fearful of political violence, while foreign diplomats have nearly come to blows over how to solve the country's leadership crisis.
