A bomber detonated “a Humvee vehicle which was full of explosives” close to a public protection unit in Ghazni on Sunday morning, according to spokesman for provincial governor Wahidullah Jumazada.

Th attack killed at least 26 people and injured 17 others, director of Ghazni hospital Baz Mohammad Hemat said. “All of them are security personnel."

The casualties are expected to rise further, authorities said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack which is the worst targeting the country’s security forces in recent months.

Violence continues to take a heavy toll in the war-torn country even as government negotiators and the Taliban have been engaged in peace talks in Qatar, in an effort to end nearly two decades of war.

The intra-Afghan talks began in the wake of a deal reached between the United States and the Taliban in Doha back in February, but progress has so far been slow.

Under the Taliban-US deal, Washington promised to pull out all its troops by mid-2021 in return for the Taliban to stop their attacks on US-led occupation foreign forces in Afghanistan.

The deal was intended to result in the reduction of violence, but Taliban militants have continued to stage deadly attacks against Afghan security forces and civilians.

According to recent official data, Taliban bombings and other assaults have increased 70 percent since the militant group reached the deal with Washington.