8 CIA agents killed

A helicopter (above) flying over a road on which four Canadian troops and a reporter embedded with their unit died on Wednesday, when their armoured vehicle hit a bomb while they were conducting an afternoon patrol south of Kandahar city. -- PHOTO: AP

KABUL: The Taleban yesterday claimed responsibility for a suicide attack inside a United States army base that killed eight operatives of the Central Intelligence Agency, saying the attacker was a 'well-dressed' officer in the Afghan army.

The attack at the CIA base - Forward Operating Base Chapman, in Khost province - appeared to be the single deadliest episode for the spy agency in the eight years since the Sept 11 attacks.

The strike also dealt a significant blow to the often insular, tight-knit organisation, which has lost only 90 officers in the line of duty since its founding in 1947.

One former CIA official said the final number of dead could be higher because at least six American civilians had been wounded.

'This deadly attack was carried out by a valorous Afghan army member when the officials (CIA agents) were busy gaining information about the mujahideen,' Taleban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in an e-mailed reply to Reuters' questions.

Although details of Wednesday's attack remained sketchy, a Nato official said the bomber managed to elude security and reach an area near the base's gym. It was not clear whether the bomber, who died in the blast, entered the gym.