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A suicide bomber blew himself up at a bank close to the heavily protected U.S. embassy compound in the Afghan capital on Tuesday, killing at least four people and wounding several, the interior ministry said.

KABUL: A suicide bomber blew himself up at a bank close to the heavily protected U.S. embassy in the Afghan capital Kabul on Tuesday, killing at least five people and wounding eight, the interior ministry said.

The bomber hit the entrance to a Kabul Bank branch in the well-off area of Kabul, close to the main diplomatic quarter, ministry spokesman Najib Danish said. He said at least five people had been killed and eight wounded.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which came as banks were busy with people taking out money ahead of the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday at the end of the week, saying it had targeted soldiers and police withdrawing their salaries.

The latest in a long series of suicide attacks in Kabul highlight the danger in the city, where 209 civilians were killed and 777 injured in the first half of the year, according to U.N. figures.

The Taliban, fighting to restore Islamic law and drive out international forces backing the government in Kabul, have carried out many of the attacks. Other militant groups, including the affiliated Haqqani network and the local branch of Islamic State, have carried out others.

Attacks on banks where soldiers and police withdraw their salaries have become a regular tactic of the Taliban and the movement's spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said several members of the security forces had been killed. There was no confirmation from the government.

President Ashraf Ghani's government, facing growing public anger over insecurity in Kabul, has started tightening checks around the centre of the city, where many of the most deadly attacks have taken place.</s>KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A suicide bombing in a busy commercial area in Kabul near a string of banks and not far from the U.S. Embassy killed at least five people on Tuesday, Afghan officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.

Elsewhere, at least 13 civilians were killed in an overnight airstrike by the Afghan air force that targeted the Taliban in western Herat province.

In the Kabul attack, the explosion likely targeted a branch of the privately owned Kabul Bank, according to Basir Mujahid, spokesman for the Kabul police chief. The U.S. Embassy compound is located about 500 meters (yards) down the road from the bank.

At the site of the blast, debris and twisted metal lay scattered on the pavement. The front side of the bank was completely shattered and there was much damage to the fronts of several adjacent businesses. A charred motorcycle with its parts mangled lay on the street.

Along with the five killed, the attack also wounded nine, said Mohammad Salim Rasouli, chief of Kabul hospitals at the Health Ministry. He warned that those were only initial reports and that the casualty toll could rise further.

The bomber had walked up to the bank and was about to go through the security check and enter the bank, an Afghan official told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. Apparently realizing he would not pass the body check, he detonated his explosives vest just outside the door, the official added.

Sayed Jan, a government employee who was waiting in line with colleagues to get his salary said he didn’t realize immediately what was happening.

“When I came out (of the bank), I suddenly saw police opening fire, I was confused about what was happening,” he said. “I saw my friends running away.”

Two of his friends were among the nine wounded in the attack, he added.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, posted the insurgents’ claim of responsibility on his twitter account, saying that a Taliban suicide bomber targeted military personnel who had gathered at the Kabul Bank to collect their salaries ahead of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.

The Taliban often target banks, especially at the end of the month when civil servants and military personnel line up to receive their salaries, or ahead of major Muslim holidays.

This week, the Kabul banks have been especially crowded as Muslims prepare for Eid al-Adha or “feast of the sacrifice.” It’s the most important Islamic holiday that commemorates the willingness of the Prophet Ibrahim — also known as Abraham to Christians and Jews — to sacrifice his son before God stayed his hand.

During the holiday, Muslims slaughter livestock, distributing part of the meat to the poor. The holiday begins on the 10th day of the Islamic lunar month of Dhul-Hijja, during the hajj pilgrimage.

Two months ago, ahead of the Eid al-Fitr Muslim holiday, a Taliban suicide bomber targeted a Kabul Bank branch in southern Helmand province, killing at least 29 people, mostly civilians. At the time, the Taliban claimed there were no civilian deaths and said they had only targeted members of the Afghan security forces who had gone to the bank to collect their salaries.

Kabul has also seen a sharp increase in attacks lately.

Last week, 28 people, including women and children, were killed when Islamic State militants attacked a Shiite mosque during Friday prayers. In that attack, which went on for hours, more than 50 people were also wounded after two assailants blew themselves up. Another two attackers were shot dead by Afghan security forces.

In the Herat airstrike, at least 13 civilians, including women and children, were killed as Afghan security forces targeted the Taliban in western province, according to Gelani Farhad, spokesman for the provincial governor.

Farhad told The Associated Press that the Monday night strike in Shindand district also wounded seven civilians. A Taliban base and a prison run by the insurgents were targeted, he said. The prison was destroyed and 19 prisoners — both military and civilians escaped. The civilians who were killed died in their homes just next to the Taliban base, he added.

According to the spokesman, the airstrikes also killed 16 Taliban militants. The Taliban have not commented on the Herat attack and Farhad’s information could not be independently verified.</s>At least six persons were killed and nine injured on Tuesday in a suicide attack near a bank in Kabul, Afghan police said.

The attack took place at around 10 a.m. near a New Kabul Bank branch in a heavily protected area about 300 metres from NATO’s Resolute Support Mission Headquarters, the US Embassy and the Kabul Supreme Court.

Kabul police spokesperson, Basir Mujahid told Efe news the victims included five civilians and the attacker.

The wounded, including four women, were taken in several ambulances to the Wazir Akbar Khan hospital, Afghan Ministry of Public Health spokesperson Ismail Kawsi told Efe.

The Taliban has claimed the attack that was likely targeted at soldiers and police officers who were at the bank to withdraw their salaries ahead of the Eid al-Adha holiday this week.</s>KABUL, Afghanistan — A suicide bombing in a busy commercial area in Kabul near a string of banks and not far from the U.S. Embassy killed at least five people on Tuesday, Afghan officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.

Elsewhere, at least 13 civilians were killed in an overnight airstrike by the Afghan air force that targeted the Taliban in western Herat province.

In the Kabul attack, the explosion likely targeted a branch of the privately owned Kabul Bank, according to Basir Mujahid, spokesman for the Kabul police chief. The U.S. Embassy compound is located about 500 meters (yards) down the road from the bank.

At the site of the blast, debris and twisted metal lay scattered on the pavement. The front side of the bank was completely shattered and there was much damage to the fronts of several adjacent businesses. A charred motorcycle with its parts mangled lay on the street.

Along with the five killed, the attack also wounded nine, said Mohammad Salim Rasouli, chief of Kabul hospitals at the Health Ministry. He warned that those were only initial reports and that the casualty toll could rise further.

The bomber had walked up to the bank and was about to go through the security check and enter the bank, an Afghan official told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. Apparently realizing he would not pass the body check, he detonated his explosives vest just outside the door, the official added.

Sayed Jan, a government employee who was waiting in line with colleagues to get his salary said he didn't realize immediately what was happening.

"When I came out (of the bank), I suddenly saw police opening fire, I was confused about what was happening," he said. "I saw my friends running away."

Two of his friends were among the nine wounded in the attack, he added.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, posted the insurgents' claim of responsibility on his twitter account, saying that a Taliban suicide bomber targeted military personnel who had gathered at the Kabul Bank to collect their salaries ahead of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.

The Taliban often target banks, especially at the end of the month when civil servants and military personnel line up to receive their salaries, or ahead of major Muslim holidays.

This week, the Kabul banks have been especially crowded as Muslims prepare for Eid al-Adha or "feast of the sacrifice." It's the most important Islamic holiday that commemorates the willingness of the Prophet Ibrahim — also known as Abraham to Christians and Jews — to sacrifice his son before God stayed his hand.

During the holiday, Muslims slaughter livestock, distributing part of the meat to the poor. The holiday begins on the 10th day of the Islamic lunar month of Dhul-Hijja, during the hajj pilgrimage.

Two months ago, ahead of the Eid al-Fitr Muslim holiday, a Taliban suicide bomber targeted a Kabul Bank branch in southern Helmand province, killing at least 29 people, mostly civilians. At the time, the Taliban claimed there were no civilian deaths and said they had only targeted members of the Afghan security forces who had gone to the bank to collect their salaries.

Kabul has also seen a sharp increase in attacks lately.

Last week, 28 people, including women and children, were killed when Islamic State militants attacked a Shiite mosque during Friday prayers. In that attack, which went on for hours, more than 50 people were also wounded after two assailants blew themselves up. Another two attackers were shot dead by Afghan security forces.

In the Herat airstrike, at least 13 civilians, including women and children, were killed as Afghan security forces targeted the Taliban in western province, according to Gelani Farhad, spokesman for the provincial governor.

Farhad told The Associated Press that the Monday night strike in Shindand district also wounded seven civilians. A Taliban base and a prison run by the insurgents were targeted, he said. The prison was destroyed and 19 prisoners — both military and civilians escaped. The civilians who were killed died in their homes just next to the Taliban base, he added.

According to the spokesman, the airstrikes also killed 16 Taliban militants. The Taliban have not commented on the Herat attack and Farhad's information could not be independently verified.</s>A suicide bombing in a busy commercial area in Kabul near a string of banks and not far from the U.S. Embassy killed at least five people on Tuesday, Afghan officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.

Elsewhere, at least 13 civilians were killed in an overnight airstrike by the Afghan air force that targeted the Taliban in western Herat province.

In the Kabul attack, the explosion likely targeted a branch of the privately owned Kabul Bank, according to Basir Mujahid, spokesman for the Kabul police chief. The U.S. Embassy compound is located about 500 meters (yards) down the road from the bank.

At the site of the blast, debris and twisted metal lay scattered on the pavement. The front side of the bank was completely shattered and there was much damage to the fronts of several adjacent businesses. A charred motorcycle with its parts mangled lay on the street.

Along with the five killed, the attack also wounded nine, said Mohammad Salim Rasouli, chief of Kabul hospitals at the Health Ministry. He warned that those were only initial reports and that the casualty toll could rise further.

The bomber had walked up to the bank and was about to go through the security check and enter the bank, an Afghan official told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media. Apparently realizing he would not pass the body check, he detonated his explosives vest just outside the door, the official added. (AP)

See more news-related photo galleries and follow us on Yahoo News Photo Twitter and Tumblr.</s>Kabul: An explosion occurred on a busy shopping street near the heavily-fortified United States embassy in central Kabul on Tuesday, officials said, killing at least one and injuring eight.

"An explosion has happened near Massoud Square in Kabul. We have no more details yet," Najib Danish, a spokesman for Afghanistan's interior ministry, told AFP.

An official in the ministry added that the blast happened outside a bank at a time when many security forces personnel were expected to be collecting their salaries ahead of this week's Eid holiday.

"One dead and eight wounded people have been brought to Kabul hospitals so far," Waheed Majroh, health ministry spokesman, told AFP.

The blast occurred around 10 am (0530 GMT) on a street lined with banks and shops leading to Massoud Square near the United States embassy, close to Kabul's diplomatic area.

It was the latest explosion to rock the war-weary Afghan capital and comes a week after United States president Donald Trump committed American soldiers to Afghanistan indefinitely.

In May a massive truck bomb ripped through Kabul's diplomatic quarter, killing about 150 and wounding around 400 people, mostly civilians.</s>KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghan officials say a suicide bombing has killed at least five people in a busy commercial area in central Kabul, not far from the U.S. Embassy.

Basir Mujahid, spokesman for the Kabul police chief, says Tuesday’s explosion likely targeted a branch of the privately owned Kabul Bank. The U.S. Embassy compound is located about 500 meters (yards) down the road from the Kabul Bank.

Mohammad Salim Rasouli, chief of Kabul hospitals at the Health Ministry, confirmed that the attack also wounded nine people, according to initial reports.

No one claimed responsibility for the bombing, but the Taliban often target banks, especially at the end of the month when civil servants and military personnel line up to receive their salaries, or ahead of major Muslim holidays.</s>Five people were killed, with another eight injured, in the blast near the US embassy in Kabul on Tuesday, Waheed Majroh, the Afghan Health Ministry's spokesman, told Sputnik."According to the most recent figures, five were killed and eight were injured," Majroh said.The spokesman added that the Health Ministry has not heard anything about US embassy personnel being affected by the explosion and it does not have any information regarding the identity of the victims.A US military spokesman told Sputnik that no US troops stationed in Afghanistan were injured in the explosion.According to the Tolo News broadcaster, nearby buildings were damaged. The explosion was carried out by a suicide attacker.The Taliban terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the recent Kabul explosion that took place close to the US embassy, local media reported.The blast hit a Kabul Bank branch not far from the heavily fortified US embassy building, the Reuters news agency reported.The explosion occurred a few days after the Shiite mosque attack . A suicide bomber blew himself up in Zamam Mosque. At least 2 were people killed and 11 others were injured in that incident.</s>KABUL – A suicide bomber blew himself up at a bank close to the heavily protected US embassy compound in the Afghan capital on Tuesday, killing at least four people and wounding several, the interior ministry said.

The bomber hit the entrance to a Kabul Bank branch in the well-off area of Kabul, close to the main diplomatic quarter, ministry spokesman Najib Danish said.

It was not immediately clear how many casualties had been caused by the explosion, which came as banks were busy with people withdrawing money ahead of the Muslim Eid holiday at the end of the week.

Danish said at least four people had been killed and three wounded while the public health ministry said separately that one dead and eight wounded had been brought to city hospitals.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. A spokesman for the Taliban, who are seeking to reimpose Islamic law after their 2001 ouster by US-led troops, said he was checking reports.

The latest in a long series of suicide attacks in Kabul highlight the danger in the Afghan capital, where 209 civilians were killed and 777 injured in the first half of the year alone, according to United Nations figures.

 President Ashraf Ghani’s government has started tightening security around the center of the city, where many of the most deadly attacks have taken place.</s>KABUL: A suicide bomber blew himself up at a bank close to the heavily protected US embassy in the Afghan capital Kabul on Tuesday (Aug 29), killing at least five people and wounding eight, the interior ministry said.

The bomber hit the entrance to a Kabul Bank branch in the well-off area of Kabul, close to the main diplomatic quarter, ministry spokesman Najib Danish said. He said at least five people had been killed and eight wounded.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which came as banks were busy with people taking out money ahead of the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday at the end of the week, saying it had targeted soldiers and police withdrawing their salaries.

The latest in a long series of suicide attacks in Kabul highlight the danger in the city, where 209 civilians were killed and 777 injured in the first half of the year, according to UN figures.

The Taliban, fighting to restore Islamic law and drive out international forces backing the government in Kabul, have carried out many of the attacks. Other militant groups, including the affiliated Haqqani network and the local branch of Islamic State, have carried out others.

Attacks on banks where soldiers and police withdraw their salaries have become a regular tactic of the Taliban and the movement's spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said several members of the security forces had been killed. There was no confirmation from the government.

President Ashraf Ghani's government, facing growing public anger over insecurity in Kabul, has started tightening checks around the centre of the city, where many of the most deadly attacks have taken place.
A suicide bomber kills five people at the entrance of a Kabul Bank subsidiary near the Embassy of the United States in Kabul. The Taliban claims their attack targeted soldiers and police withdrawing their salaries.