80 die as blast rips apart diplomatic area in Kabul
CITY SHAKEN Over 350 injured, close shave for Indian consulate 100m away
At least 80 people were killed and more than 350 wounded when a massive bomb tore through Kabul’s strongly fortified diplomatic quarter during the Wednesday morning rush hour, Afghan public health officials said.
A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-packed vehicle in Zanbaq Square around 08:30am, the interior ministry said in a statement. “More than 50 vehicles were either destroyed or damaged.”
Employees at the German embassy in Kabul were injured in a powerful bomb explosion and an Afghan security guard was killed, German foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Twitter.
“The attack took place very close to the German embassy. It hit civilians and those who are in Afghanistan to work for a better future for the country with the people there. It’s especially contemptible that these people were the target,” Gabriel said.
Bodies littered the scene and a huge plume of smoke rose from the area which houses foreign embassies. However, it was not immediately clear what the target was.
Witnesses described dozens of cars choking the roads as wounded survivors and panicked schoolgirls sought safety, with men and woman struggling to get through security checkpoints to search for loved ones.
“A car bomb” exploded at 8:25am, Najib Danish, an interior ministry spokesperson, said.
A health ministry spokesperson said the injured people, mainly civilians, had been rushed to Kabul’s hospitals.
“By God’s grace, Indian embassy staff are safe in the massive #Kabul blast,” external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted. The Indian embassy is among those close to the area.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also condemned the bomb blast in Kabul and underlined the need for defeating forces supporting terrorism.
“We strongly condemn the terrorist blast in Kabul. Our thoughts are with the families of the deceased & prayers with the injured,” Modi tweeted.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility. The Taliban denied any role in the blast.
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