The Taliban have killed at least twenty-five Afghan soldiers in an insider attack in central Afghanistan, underscoring the dangers Afghan forces face from within their own ranks.

The overnight insider attack happened in the Qarabagh district where a group of seven security personnel Friday night turned their guns on fellow soldiers at a local Afghan army base.

Defence ministry spokesman Fawad Aman later told that the troops had been killed by Taliban infiltrators.

The Taliban claimed in a statement the attack killed 32 security forces and its fighters captured the base, though insurgent claims are often exaggerated.

Aman denied a report from a member of Ghazni’s provincial council that 23 Afghan security forces had been killed.

Friday’s attack underscores the ongoing dangers Afghan and allied forces face from Taliban fighters pretending to be loyal to the government.

Earlier, ten civilians, including four women and a child, were killed when their vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb in eastern Afghanistan.

The explosion happened in the volatile district of Jaghatu in Ghazni province after the US and Taliban paused ongoing talks on Thursday.

“Unfortunately, in the explosion 10 people, including four women and a child, were killed,” Ghazni provincial governor spokesman Aref Noori told.

All the victims of the blast were civilians, he added, saying six others were wounded.

There was no claim of responsibility for the explosion.

Afghan security forces are reported to have experienced around 50 insider attacks this year that have killed scores of personnel.

Ghazni has been for months the site of heavy fighting between Afghan forces and the Taliban. The insurgent group controls or hotly contests many districts in the province.

On Friday, at least ten civilians were killed and six injured when their minivan traveling to the provincial capital, also named Ghazni, hit a roadside bomb.

No-one took responsibility for the violence but Afghan officials blamed the Taliban for planting the bomb.