Car bomb blast in Kabul kills four, dozens wounded

At least four people were killed and more than 50 wounded when a bomb-laden car blew up near a high-security compound in the Afghan capital Kabul on Monday, officials said.

An Afghan government security official said the blast occurred on Jalalabad Road in eastern Kabul near the Green Village compound, home to several international companies and charities.

“Most of the victims were civilians,” said Najib Danish, an Interior Ministry spokesman.

Police spokesman Basir Mujahid said a vehicle full of explosives had been detonated. “The area is cordoned off ... and search operation underway for suspects and attackers,” he said.

“It was a powerful car bomb that knocked (down) a wall between Green Village and the customs office,” a security source said.

An official at Kabul’s Emergency Hospital said 15 wounded had been brought there, while a Reuters witness saw dozens of severely injured people being rushed to Wazir Akbar Khan Hospital from the blast site.

A senior Interior Ministry official said the explosion destroyed at least three checkpoints.

“Residential buildings nearby have sustained heavy damage and several private guards around the Green Village checkpoints were critically injured,” the official said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing. Green Village has come under Islamist militant attack in the past.

The latest attack comes as U.S. special peace envoy for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad was touring the region for meetings aimed at bringing an end to the 17-year war in Afghanistan.

Last week, Taliban leaders called off a fourth round of talks with U.S. officials in Qatar due to an “agenda disagreement” and refused to allow what they called “puppet” Afghan government officials to join the talk.