Explosion rocks Kabul on first day of the new year

It is also a stark reminder of the difficulty Afghan officials face in their attempts to revive the stalled peace process, which broke down in July.

The attack occurred near the eastern entrance of the airport, said Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi. It was not immediately clear what happened to the third attacker.

The Taliban militant group has yet to make comments.

In August, the US Embassy in Afghanistan warned of possible Taliban attacks in Taimani on “several targets frequented by foreigners”.

Afghanistan and Pakistan are renewing efforts to forge peace in the new year, scheduling a round of talks in Pakistan for January 11.

Prospects of success have been clouded by bloody infighting in the Taliban over the leadership succession which has made it hard to identify which parts of the movement may be open to talks and which remain committed to the insurgency.

Shopkeeper Ahmed Massoud’s cousin, a guard at the Afghan-owned restaurant, was killed as the bomber detonated his suicide vest when he stopped to frisk him.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who said this week that terrorism had to end for the talks to succeed, condemned the latest attack.

In the wake of that and other attacks, many restaurants closed.

The Taliban have stepped up their attacks against the Afghan security forces across the country throughout a year ago, following the withdrawal of foreign combat forces. Local media reported that the restaurant is frequently visited by expats.

“The security is very tight in the area and it has been cordoned off by the police”.

The powerful explosion shook the Qala-e Fatullah neighborhood and sprayed debris for the length of a football field.

Firefighters spray water to clean the site of a suicide auto bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, December 28, 2015.