1 killed, 8 injured in explosion near US embassy in Kabul

No details have yet been released by security forces on the explosives used.

At least one person was killed and eight others wounded in the explosion near US Embassy area in Kabul on Tuesday. Security forces have cordoned off the area.

Health Ministry official said that one person killed and eight wounded in explosion, but casualty toll could rise, reports Afghan media. Ambulances have arrived in the area.

The injured have been shifted to Wazir Akbar Khan hospital following the explosion. No details have yet been released by security forces on the explosives used.

Nearby buildings have sustained substantial damage. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the incident.

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.

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.

(With agency inputs)