KABUL - A suicide bomber on a motorcycle blew himself up at an army training centre in the Afghan capital on Wednesday, killing nine people and injuring 28, the defence ministry said. The blast in northern Kabul is the first major attack in Afghanistan since the war-scarred country held landmark parliamentary elections earlier this month, and follows a period of relative calm in the city.âToday just after 4:30 pm (1200 GMT) a man riding on a motorbike carried out a suicide attack in front of the Kabul military training centre,â Defence Ministry spokesman Mohammed Zahir Azimi told AFP.
âOur initial reports suggest that nine people have been killed and 28 wounded. Four of the nine killed are Afghan National Army soldiers and the rest are under investigation,â he said. He said that the suicide bomber was wearing a military uniform. âThree vehicles were destroyed and the road is closed,â he added.
An eyewitness who asked not to be named said he saw the motorbike crashing into the parking area of the centre. âI saw an explosion and some casualties. Two buses were set ablaze,â he told an AFP reporter at the scene. âIt was rush hour and lots of officials and soldiers were leaving the base.â District police chief Colonel Mohammad Akbar also confirmed there had been a blast causing a number of casualties. âThe suicide bomber was riding a motorcyle and he crashed himself against an ANA training center,â he said.
A western military source speaking on condition of anonymity said the victims were all Afghans and none were serving with either the US military or with the NAT0-led peacekeeping force in Afghanistan.
Dozens of peacekeepers had been deployed near the site of the blast.