A powerful explosion tore through a busy commercial street in central Kabul on Monday afternoon, killing at least seven people and wounding more than a dozen others, according to officials and medical sources, according to Reuters.
The blast struck the Shahr-e-Naw neighborhood, an area known for its flower sellers, restaurants, and hotels, sending shockwaves through a district usually crowded with shoppers and pedestrians. Emergency vehicles and police quickly sealed off the area as smoke drifted across the street and shattered glass littered the pavement.
“We do have casualties, both wounded and killed,” the interior ministry said in a brief statement, without providing further details on the cause of the explosion.
The Italian humanitarian organization EMERGENCY, which operates a hospital near the site, said seven victims were brought in dead, while 13 others were admitted for surgery. Among the injured were four women and a child, the group’s country director, Dejan Panic, said.
Witnesses described scenes of fear and confusion. A flower shop owner, who asked not to be identified for security reasons, said he heard a “strong blast” around 3:30 p.m. local time from the far end of the street. “It was an emergency situation. Everybody feared for his own life,” he told AFP, adding that he saw at least five people wounded in the immediate aftermath.
Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran said the explosion occurred inside a hotel, though authorities have not yet disclosed what caused it. The area, which includes several restaurants popular with locals and foreigners alike, was heavily guarded following the blast.
An AFP journalist at the scene reported seeing a damaged restaurant, a police vehicle and a truck parked nearby, and a car with its windows blown out. Security forces cordoned off the street as investigators began their work.
China’s state news agency Xinhua reported that two Chinese nationals were seriously injured in the explosion, citing a restaurant employee. An Afghan security guard was killed, and the restaurant sustained severe damage, the report said.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which underscores the persistent security challenges facing Afghanistan’s capital.
