Suicide car bomb in Afghan capital kills three

Interior ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said the explosion targeted a government forces checkpoint near the gate.

No-one immediately claimed responsibility, though suspicion immediately fell on the Taliban.

Violence and chaos have increased in Afghanistan in recent months even as government negotiators and the Taliban meet in Qatar to find an end to decades of relentless war. The two sides have made little progress.

The attack on the army checkpoint follows weeks of violence, including an attack by gunmen earlier this month claimed by the so-called Islamic State group affiliate at Kabul University that killed 22 people, mostly students.

The government’s head of peace negotiations, Abdullah Abdullah, on Friday urged the Taliban to find a peaceful solution to the war, saying “we have offered ways but Taliban are not trying to reach to an understanding”.

On Thursday, Taliban fighters attacked a government security forces checkpoint in northern Kunduz province, killing five soldiers and wounding two others, said Esmatullah Muradi, the provincial governor’s spokesman.

The defence ministry claims 10 Taliban fighters were killed in the fighting.