Hundreds killed in multiple Taliban attacks in Afghanistan since Friday

At least 48 people were killed and 67 more wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up at an education centre in a mainly Shia area of the Afghan capital of Kabul on Wednesday, the health ministry said.

The bomber targeted a private building in the Shia neighbourhood of Dashte Barchi where a group of young men and women, all high school graduates, were studying for university entrance exams.

Majroh didn't say if all the victims were students and whether any of their teachers were also among the casualties.

The attack came after days of attacks by Taliban militants in the country's north, centre and south left hundreds dead.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast in Kabul that follows several weeks of relative calm in the capital, but previous attacks on Shia targets in the area have been claimed by Daesh.

TRT World's Jemima Walker reports.

Taliban attack in Baghlan province

Earlier on Wednesday, the Taliban attacked a military outpost in the northern province of Baghlan killing more than 40 Afghan police and soldiers, provincial officials said, as the insurgents kept up pressure on government forces.

There was no immediate comment from the ministry of defence but officials in the area said nine police and 35 soldiers were killed in the attack, the latest in a series that have killed dozens of members of the security forces in provinces across Afghanistan.

TRT World's Sultan Faizy has this update from the capital Kabul.

Zabul attack

In a third attack on Wednesday, Taliban stormed a police checkpoint in southern Zabul province, killing four police, according to the provincial police chief, Mustafa Mayar, who said three other officers were wounded. 

Mayar said seven attackers were killed and five were wounded during the battle, in which the Taliban used artillery and heavy weapons.

Ghazni battle winds down

The attacks on Wednesday came as the situation in the embattled central city of Ghazni eased after the Taliban said they had ordered forces out after five days of fighting that killed and wounded hundreds and left the city a burned-out wreck.

The Taliban assault on Ghazni ended after the US and NATO launched air strikes and sent military advisers to aid Afghan forces fighting to secure the city, which is just 120 kilometres from the capital, Kabul, and has a population of some 270,000 people.

Arif Noori, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said on Wednesday that "life is getting back to normal" after at least 35 civilians were killed in recent days. But he said wounded people were still arriving at the city's only hospital, which has been overwhelmed by the casualties.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it was providing dressing packages and oral and intravenous medicine to treat wounded at the provincial hospital.

The ICRC also sent fresh water and electricity generators for trauma surgeries and delivered material for the management of remains.

About 20 percent of the population in Ghazni depend on the city water system, which has been down since the beginning of fighting. The ICRC is organising emergency water supplies by truck to cover the needs of about 18,000 people.

Capture of Faryab military base

The Taliban captured an Afghan military base late on Monday in northern Faryab province, officials and local media confirmed on Tuesday.

Sibghatullah Sailab, deputy chairman for the provincial assembly, told Anadolu Agency the Afghan National Army base in Ghormach district had succumbed to a Taliban siege after two days of fighting.

The local Tolo News channel reported that 43 security personnel have been killed and wounded and 17 others were taken hostage by the militant group during the battle.