A strong explosion burst through central Kabul amid morning rush hour on Tuesday, a week later the Taliban introduced the start of their annual “spring offensive”. The blast struck a dimly packed neighborhood close to various military compounds.No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

Last Tuesdasy:Afghan Taliban introduced the start of their “spring offensive” even as the government in Kabul seeks to bring the insurgents back to the negotiating table to end their drawn-out conflict.

The Taliban warned, "they would employ large-scale attacks on enemy positions across the country" amid the offensive dubbed Operation Omari in honour of the movement's late founder Mullah Omar, whose death was announced last year.

The annual spring offensive normally marks the start of the "fighting season", though this winter the lull was shorter and they continued to battle government forces albeit with less intensity.