There have been numerous fatalities from a suicide bombing outside the Afghan foreign ministry in Kabul.
Police reported that at least five civilians had died, but a Taliban official said that there may have been as many as 20.
Isis-K, a local branch of the Islamic State organization, claimed responsibility for the
assault.
It follows recent explosions aimed at foreign interests. There are embassies for several nations in the region, including Turkey and China.
The bomber attempted to penetrate the ministry building directly during the strike at about 16:00 local time (11:30 GMT), according to the Taliban.
The structure itself didn’t seem to have sustained much harm. Window panes at the
adjoining interior ministry were also broken by the blast.
However, the Italian humanitarian organization Emergency NGO in Kabul reported that it had received more than 40 wounded individuals and that the number of casualties was still rising.
The incident, according to Kabul police, was cowardly, and they said in a statement that those responsible will be held accountable.
In a Telegram thread, Isis-K claimed there were at least 20 fatalities from the explosion.
Additionally, it claimed that “many ‘diplomatic’ staff” were among the fatalities, a claim that was not corroborated by another source.
According to earlier reports, the Chinese delegation was scheduled to meet with Afghan government representatives inside the foreign ministry building at the time of the incident.
However, a top official in the prime minister’s office confirmed to AFP that there were no foreigners there.
In recent months, there have been several attacks that have targeted foreigners or
foreign interests at a time when the Taliban is attempting to entice investment from
surrounding nations.
Since the Taliban took over last year, dozens of explosions have shaken Afghanistan;
the majority of these explosions were claimed by Isis-K.
