KABUL – Afghan President Hamid Karzai's office says 17 people have been killed and 39 wounded by a Taliban suicide attack at the entrance of the Supreme Court in Kabul.

General Mohammad Zahir, head of Kabul’s criminal investigations, says most of the casualties from the June 11 attack were Supreme Court employees who were leaving work for the day.

He says the bomber directly targeted the Supreme Court staff by ramming an explosives-packed car into a minibus that was transporting them out of the government building's compound.

The Taliban has issued a statement claiming responsibility and threatening further attacks against Afghanistan's judiciary if it continues to issue death sentences against Taliban fighters.

With reporting by AFP, Reuters, AP, and dpa