KABUL, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber blew himself up Saturday morning near Western embassies and the headquarters of NATO forces here, killing at least four people and wounding four others, including children, Afghan officials said.
“There was a blast reported outside the ISAF headquarters,” said Lt. Col. Hagen Messer, a spokesman for the International Security Assistance Force, as the NATO-led military coalition is known. Colonel Messer added that no NATO personnel had been hurt. “The headquarters is at the moment secured,” he said. “There is no reported damage and casualties.”
But the number of Afghan civilian casualties was likely to rise. At the scene of the bombing Saturday, the bodies of six children and two adults lay beneath trees at the side of the road. Witnesses could also see what officials said were the legs of the suicide bomber.
The bomber’s intended target was not clear, but the attack took place close to Western embassies and the offices of the N.D.S., the Afghan intelligence directorate, in a district usually crowded with street vendors. The Taliban claimed responsibility. Zabiullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, said the target was a C.I.A. installation.
The attack was “on a house C.I.A. operatives were using to recruit and train Afghan spies and house senior C.I.A. officers,” he said.
The Haqqani network, a Taliban affiliate, has in the past carried out attacks in Kabul. The bombing Saturday came a day after the United States designated the Haqqanis as a terrorist group.
The loud explosion rocked the center of the capital at about 11:30 a.m., as top Afghan officials gathered in Kabul amid tight security to celebrate the 11th anniversary of the death of one of the country’s most famous anti-Taliban fighters.
The explosion was quickly followed by warning messages sent out over loudspeakers from the ISAF military compounds nearby.
Haji Waisullah Taj, police chief of District 10, where the bombing took place, said the suicide bomber had approached on foot before detonating his explosives.
Gen. Daoud Amin, the Kabul deputy police chief, said the attacker had been carrying a sack, not unlike ones that young street vendors in the area use to carry merchandise. He apparently blew himself up outside a row of stores, including a shop selling carpets and handicrafts.
Afghan police officials said the suicide bomber was as young as 13 to 16 years old, but Mr. Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, rejected this, saying the attacker was a “mature, brave young man.”
Colonel Messer, the ISAF spokesman, said NATO personnel were standing by to assist Afghan officials with any of the civilian casualties.
But by about 1 p.m., the area was secure and the bodies had been taken away. Soldiers from the nearby Italian Embassy were also inspecting the site, and a fire truck arrived to wash away blood, leaves and debris.
The attack punctuated a day of tightened security throughout the city as Afghanistan marked 11 years since the death of Ahmed Shah Massoud, who fought the Taliban during the 1990s and is considered a national hero by many here.
Sangar Rahimi and an employee of The New York Times in Kabul contributed reporting.
“There was a blast reported outside the ISAF headquarters,” said Lt. Col. Hagen Messer, a spokesman for the International Security Assistance Force, as the NATO-led military coalition is known. Colonel Messer added that no NATO personnel had been hurt. “The headquarters is at the moment secured,” he said. “There is no reported damage and casualties.”
But the number of Afghan civilian casualties was likely to rise. At the scene of the bombing Saturday, the bodies of six children and two adults lay beneath trees at the side of the road. Witnesses could also see what officials said were the legs of the suicide bomber.
The bomber’s intended target was not clear, but the attack took place close to Western embassies and the offices of the N.D.S., the Afghan intelligence directorate, in a district usually crowded with street vendors. The Taliban claimed responsibility. Zabiullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, said the target was a C.I.A. installation.
The attack was “on a house C.I.A. operatives were using to recruit and train Afghan spies and house senior C.I.A. officers,” he said.
The Haqqani network, a Taliban affiliate, has in the past carried out attacks in Kabul. The bombing Saturday came a day after the United States designated the Haqqanis as a terrorist group.
The loud explosion rocked the center of the capital at about 11:30 a.m., as top Afghan officials gathered in Kabul amid tight security to celebrate the 11th anniversary of the death of one of the country’s most famous anti-Taliban fighters.
The explosion was quickly followed by warning messages sent out over loudspeakers from the ISAF military compounds nearby.
Haji Waisullah Taj, police chief of District 10, where the bombing took place, said the suicide bomber had approached on foot before detonating his explosives.
Gen. Daoud Amin, the Kabul deputy police chief, said the attacker had been carrying a sack, not unlike ones that young street vendors in the area use to carry merchandise. He apparently blew himself up outside a row of stores, including a shop selling carpets and handicrafts.
Afghan police officials said the suicide bomber was as young as 13 to 16 years old, but Mr. Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, rejected this, saying the attacker was a “mature, brave young man.”
Colonel Messer, the ISAF spokesman, said NATO personnel were standing by to assist Afghan officials with any of the civilian casualties.
But by about 1 p.m., the area was secure and the bodies had been taken away. Soldiers from the nearby Italian Embassy were also inspecting the site, and a fire truck arrived to wash away blood, leaves and debris.
The attack punctuated a day of tightened security throughout the city as Afghanistan marked 11 years since the death of Ahmed Shah Massoud, who fought the Taliban during the 1990s and is considered a national hero by many here.
Sangar Rahimi and an employee of The New York Times in Kabul contributed reporting.