A suicide bomb assault outdoor the Afghan overseas ministry in Kabul has brought about heavy casualties.
Police stated as a minimum 5 civilians have been killed however every other Taliban reliable placed the toll as excessive as 20.
The neighborhood offshoot of the Islamic State group, called Isis-K, claimed it finished the assault.
It comes after latest blasts focused on overseas pursuits. Several countries, together with Turkey and China, have embassies withinside the area.
The assault occurred approximately 16:00 neighborhood time (11:30 GMT) whilst the bomber tried, however didn’t input the ministry constructing itself, the Taliban stated.
“I noticed the person blowing himself up,” stated Jamshed Karimi, a motive force who turned into ready outdoor the ministry.
Mr Karimi instructed AFP that he noticed a person retaining a bag and with a rifle slung over his shoulder stroll past. “He exceeded via way of means of my automobile and after some seconds there has been a noisy blast.”
The constructing itself did now no longer appear like badly damaged. At the close by indoors ministry, window panes had been additionally shattered via way of means of the explosion.
But the Italian humanitarian agency, Emergency NGO in Kabul stated it had acquired extra than forty wounded human beings and the casualty numbers had been persevering with to rise.
Kabul police defined the assault as cowardly, including in a declaration that the perpetrators could be held accountable.
Isis-K stated in a put up on Telegram that the blast killed as a minimum 20 human beings. It additionally stated “several ‘diplomatic’ employees” had been the various dead, in a declare that couldn’t be independently verified.
Earlier reviews had cautioned a Chinese delegation turned into because of keep talks with the Afghan officers withinside the overseas ministry constructing on the time of the assault.
But a senior reliable withinside the top minister’s workplace instructed AFP that no foreigners had been present.
A string of assaults has focused foreigners or overseas pursuits in latest months, at a time whilst the Taliban is making an attempt to draw funding from neighbouring countries.
Afghanistan has been rocked via way of means of dozens of blasts for the reason that Taliban seized electricity remaining year, frequently claimed via way of means of Isis-K.
Correspondents say that the Taliban have a tendency to underplay casualty figures in such incidents.
