Kabul: Gunmen attacked the Afghan presidential palace early on Tuesday, with explosions and gunfire shaking the city centre.
A Reuters reporter at the palace said the attack began soon after 6.30 a.m. (0200 GMT) on the building's east gate. All the assailants were dead, the police chief said, AFP reported.
Reporters were gathering for a press event with President Hamid Karzai. It was not immedately clear whether Karzai was inside the building at the time of the assault.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in central Kabul that targeted the presidential palace and CIA office. "A big group of attackers have struck against the CIA office as the main target and also the palace and the defence ministry nearby," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP.