KABUL A teenaged bomber on Thursday targeted a Kabul auditorium packed with people watching a drama condemning suicide attacks and being staged at a French cultural center, killing a German man and wounding 16 people, officials and a witness said. 
 
 The suicide blast was the second to strike the Afghan capital in a day, after six Afghan soldiers perished when their bus was hit on the outskirts of the city as they rode into work. 
 
 The violence, part of a nationwide campaign by Islamist Taliban insurgents to strike at military and civilian targets, came less than three weeks before the year-end deadline for most foreign combat soldiers to withdraw from the country. 
 
 General Ayoub Salangi, head of the Interior Ministry while the cabinet is being finalised, said the suspected theater bomber appeared to have been about 17 years old and detonated his explosives at the venue during an early evening performance. 
 
 "I heard a deafening explosion ... There were Afghans, foreigners, young girls and young boys watching the show," Sher Ahmad, an Afghan rights activist who was at the performance, told Reuters. 
 
 He said the blast came during a performance of a new play called "Heartbeat: Silence After the Explosion", a condemnation of suicide attacks. 
 
 "Pieces of flesh were plastered on the wall. There were children and women crying for help. Some were running out, some were just screaming." 
 
 Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the bomber targeted the event because it was staged "to insult Islamic values and spread propaganda about our jihad operations, especially on suicide attacks". 
 
 Amid confusion immediately following the blast, one person could be heard saying "It's all part of the show" in a video posted on YouTube purporting to be of the attack. 
 
 HEAVY SECURITY 
 
 Early police reports said the bomber attacked the French-run Lycée Esteqlal, one of Kabul's oldest and most highly respected high schools, but Ahmad said the performance was at the French Cultural Centre located in the same compound. 
 
 Salangi said the person confirmed killed was a German man, but he could not immediately confirm his identity. 
 
 German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said the attack was "particularly perfidious because it ... was against exactly those people who are helping the country to build a better future." 
 
 The French government said in a statement that "several" people were killed in the attack and "many" more injured, but none of the fatalities were French nationals. 
 
 The venue was heavily guarded during the event, according to Kabul police chief Abdul Rahman Rahimi, who added that the bomber may have hidden explosives in his underwear to pass through security. 
 
 He said the bomber detonated the explosives at the top of the auditorium stairs, which may have prevented more casualties. The body of the bomber was shredded, but police were able to identify him as a teenager because his head was found intact. 
 
 Taliban militants have stepped up a campaign of violence this year to take advantage of uncertainty and weakness besetting Afghanistan's security forces as they prepare to take over the war on the insurgency, now in its 13th year. 
 
 Earlier on Thursday, a suicide bomber targeted a bus carrying Afghan army personnel, the Defense Ministry said, ending a near two-week lull in attacks in the capital. As well as the six soldiers killed, 11 were wounded. 
 
 Five Afghan school children were also reported killed in a foreign forces air strike in northern Parwan province, Afghan officials said. 
 
 The International Security Assistance Force confirmed an air strike in the area, but said five insurgents were killed. 
 
 Civilian casualties caused by air strikes have been one of the most contentious issues of the war, although there are often conflicting claims. 
 
 (Additional reporting by John Irish in PARIS; Writing by Kay Johnson; Editing by Mike Collett-White) ||||| KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A teenage suicide bomber attacked a French-run high school in Kabul on Thursday, walking into a packed auditorium during a theater performance and killing a German citizen, Afghan officials said. 
 
 Afghanistan's security forces walk in front of the main gate of the French Cultural Center which was targeted by a suicide attacker in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. A teenage suicide bomber... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghans wait outside of a hospital to see their friends and relatives sent there after a suicide attack at the French Cultural Center in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. A teenage suicide... (Associated Press) 
 
 The head of the Musicians' Institute of Afghanistan, Naser Sarmast, lies on a bed at a hospital after a suicide attack at the French Cultural Center in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. A senior... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghanistan's security forces walk around the French Cultural Center which was targeted by a suicide attacker in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. A senior Afghan official said a German citizen... (Associated Press) 
 
 An Afghan National Army soldier helps to remove the damaged military minibus from the site of a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. Police in Afghanistan's capital say a suicide... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghanistan's security forces personnel patrol near the site of a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. Police in Afghanistan's capital said a suicide bomber has killed Afghan... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghan security force personnel remove a damaged military minibus from the site of a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. Police in Afghanistan's capital say a suicide bomber... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghan security force personnel look at a damaged civilian vehicle, being lifted to be removed from the site of a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. Police in Afghanistan's... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghanistan's security forces stand guard in front of the main gate of the French Cultural Center which was targeted by a suicide attacker in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. A teenage suicide... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghan police officers look at the site of a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. Police in Afghanistan's capital say a suicide bomber has killed six Afghan soldiers and wounded... (Associated Press) 
 
 A man lies on a bed at a hospital after a suicide attack at the French Cultural Center in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. A senior Afghan official said a German citizen has been killed in... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghanistan's security forces stand guard in front of the main gate of the French Cultural Center located at a high school, which was attacked by a suicide bomber in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec.... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghanistan's security forces personnel inspect the site of a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. Police in Afghanistan's capital said a suicide bomber has killed Afghan soldiers... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghanistan's security forces gather in front of the main gate of the French Cultural Center located at a high school, which was attacked by a suicide bomber in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11,... (Associated Press) 
 
 French security forces stand in front of the main gate of the French Cultural Center located at a high school, which was attacked by a suicide bomber in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. A... (Associated Press) 
 
 Afghanistan's security forces walk around the French Cultural Center which was targeted by a suicide attacker in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. A senior Afghan official said a German citizen... (Associated Press) 
 
 The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, saying the performance underway was immoral. Ironically, the subject of the musical play was the aftermath of a bombing. 
 
 It was the first attack on a foreign target in the Afghan capital in more than a week and came after a series of insurgent bombings in the past month targeted foreigners, killing a British embassy security and three members of a South African family. 
 
 Acting interior minister, Mohammad Ayoub Salangi said the person killed was German, while police chief Gen. Abdul Rahman Rahimi identified the victim as a man, without giving more details. 
 
 The attack took place inside the auditorium of the French Cultural Centre, which is on the grounds of a high school known as Lycee Estaqlal, run under contract by the French government. 
 
 German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier condemned the "cowardly attack" but did not confirm that a German was killed. 
 
 Salangi said 10 Afghan citizens were also wounded in the attack, including journalists covering the event. The bomber, who wore explosives hidden in his clothing, was probably around 16 years old, Salangi added. 
 
 "The attack is particularly perfidious because it happened at a cultural institute where Afghans and helpers from the international community come together for friendly exchanges and because it is directed against those people who are supporting the country in building a better future," Steinmeier said. 
 
 Germany plans to deploy up to 850 soldiers to the NATO-organized training and advisory mission in Afghanistan from January, which will take over after the alliance's combat troops leave the country. 
 
 The United Nations Security Council condemned the attack "in the strongest terms," called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice, and reiterated that "no terrorist act can reverse the path towards Afghan-led peace, democracy and stability in Afghanistan." 
 
 French President Francois Hollande said he condemned the "odious attack" and extended France's solidarity to the victims and their families. "By attacking this target, the terrorists were targeting culture and creativity," Hollande said. 
 
 French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said there were no French citizens among the wounded. 
 
 At the time of the attack, the center was hosting a musical play entitled, "Heartbeat: Silence After the Explosion," written and performed by the local Azdar Theatre Company. 
 
 In their claim of responsibility, the Taliban said the play was immoral, and held under the aegis of the "foreign invaders". All civil society gatherings were potential targets, the Taliban statement said. Music, movies and other forms of entertainment were banned during the Taliban rule in Afghanistan when the militant group practiced an extreme version of Islam. 
 
 One eyewitness said that the bomber walked into the cultural center's amphitheater as she was leaving and detonated his explosives inside the building. 
 
 "A lot of my friends are in there and I don't know what has happened to them," said Khadija, an artist who like many Afghans uses only one name. 
 
 Other witnesses said the explosion happened at the back of the hall, near an array of television cameras and journalists covering the event. 
 
 The head of Media Watch, an Afghan press freedom watchdog, Sidiqullah Thawhidi said three journalists — two cameramen and a reporter from Mitra Television Network — were among the wounded. 
 
 Also among the wounded was Naser Sarmast, a renowned musician and head of the Musicians' Institute of Afghanistan who was in the audience. 
 
 "I was watching the drama, my students were preforming music, I heard a blast and fell down," Sarmast told The Associated Press. "I thought it was part of the drama, until I touched my head and saw that it was bleeding and I fell down again." 
 
 The school, which is close to the Presidential Palace in the heart of Kabul, was established in 1922 and used only French as a teaching medium until 1985. It is administered by Afghanistan's Education Ministry and is currently under contract to the French government's Agency for Teaching French Abroad. 
 
 French Embassy official Yves Manville said the French government funds the school and provides some of the teachers, focusing mostly on cultural activities. 
 
 Actor Homan, who also uses one name and who was in the play, said it envisaged the aftermath of an explosion through the reincarnated souls of its victims. 
 
 "There was a big explosion and we just ran from the stage. It was horrible," he said. 
 
 Afghanistan's insurgency has intensified in recent months and the violence is expected to continue as the U.S.-led international military mission winds down toward the end of the year. U.S. and NATO soldiers will draw down to around 13,000 from Jan. 1, from a peak in 2010 of 140,000, as the Afghan security forces assume full sovereignty over the country's security. 
 
 Analysts say the Taliban are choosing foreign targets to ensure maximum publicity. 
 
 Earlier Thursday, a suicide bombing targeted a military minibus and killed six Afghan soldiers and wounded 10 people, said Farid Afzali, the chief of criminal investigation for Kabul police. He said the wounded included civilians. 
 
 "The suicide bomber was on foot," said Hashmat Stanikzai, spokesman for the Kabul provincial police chief. 
 
 The Taliban also claimed that attack. 
 
 ___ 
 
 Associated Press writers Geir Moulson in Berlin and Greg Keller in Paris contributed to this report. ||||| Story highlights A German national has been killed in the attack, a Kabul police spokesman says 
 
 A suicide bomber detonates explosives during a play called "Silence after the Explosion" 
 
 The attack occurred inside a French-funded high school in central Kabul 
 
 The Taliban claim responsibility for the attack, a spokesman says 
 
 A suicide bomber detonated explosives Thursday inside a French-funded school in Kabul during a play that condemns suicide attacks, leading to deaths and numerous injuries, the French foreign minister said. 
 
 The attack happened at Istiqlal High School, a school that includes a French cultural center, in the Afghan capital. The Taliban -- the Islamist extremist group fighting against Afghanistan's ruling government and firmly opposed by various Western powers -- claimed responsibility, according to spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid. 
 
 Around 5 p.m., the theater at the school in central Kabul was packed for a performance of a play titled "Heartbeats: Silence after the Explosion." It abruptly ended about 30 minutes later with a very loud bang, a bright light, smoke and dust, according to witness Zahir Sangar. 
 
 "When I tried to escape, I saw tens of people covered in blood, some of them were screaming and some of them were quiet," the student said. 
 
 Acting Afghan Interior Minister Mohammad Ayoub Salangi said that one person was killed and 15 others injured in the bombing. 
 
 French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said a short time later that several people had died. It was not clear exactly how many or whether the suicide bomber was among the fatalities, though Fabius did say that no French citizens were among the casualties. 
 
 "All light must be shed on this barbaric act," Fabius said. "And its perpetrators (must be) identified and brought to justice." 
 
 The dead include a German national, Kabul police spokesman Hashmat Stanikzai said. 
 
 French President Francois Hollande also issued a statement condemning what he called a "heinous attack." 
 
 "By targeting this place of dialogue," Hollande said, "it is the culture ... that terrorists have targeted."
– The Taliban pulled off a deadly suicide bombing in Kabul yesterday with a cruel twist: The blast took place during a play condemning suicide bombers, reports CNN. Authorities say the teenaged bomber set off his explosives during a performance of Heartbeat: Silence After the Explosion at the French Cultural Centre, which is located in a French-run high school, reports AP. A German national and several others were killed, though the exact numbers were unclear. Reuters quotes a Taliban spokesman who says the play was meant "to insult Islamic values and spread propaganda about our jihad operations, especially on suicide attacks."