Explosion outside Kabul passport office; reports suggest car bomb

An explosion took place outside the gate of the passport office in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Thursday. Reportedly, throngs of people had gathered outside the office in a bid to get travel documents, following the resumption of the service in recent days, and many are feared injured or dead.

At the moment, there are conflicting reports on the blast. While Hindustan Times, citing Reuters, has reported that the nature of the blast and casualty numbers are unknown as of now, local Afghan media outlets have suggested that the blast was indeed a terror attack. 

According to Afghanistan’s TOLOnews, General Mobin, the spokesperson for the Kabul security department, has said that the explosion was the result of the car bomb.

The Deccan Herald’s report on the incident also points towards the possibility of a terror attack. According to this report, an official from Afghanistan’s interior ministry has said that the attacker, a suicide bomber, was shot and killed at the entrance to the passport office. Further, a witness for the Taliban, who was present when the blast took place, has reportedly told Reuters that there are multiple injuries.

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Officials have told media that Thursday was reserved specifically for Taliban officials to visit the passport office for travel documents, and the attack may well have been a targeted one intended to injure or kill Taliban officials.

This is a developing story and further details are awaited. As of now, no official statement on casualties has been released.