44 killed, more than 100 injured in suicide blast at Indian embassy (3rd Lead)

Jul 7, 2008, 8:48 GMT

Kabul/Delhi - A powerful explosion killed at least 44 people and wounded scores of others in an apparent suicide attack at the Indian embassy in Kabul Monday, officials said.

Sources in the Afghan interior ministry said at least 44 people were killed in the deadliest suicide bombing since fall of Taliban regime in 2001.

An official statement by the Interior Ministry said only that more than 100 people were killed and injured in the incident.

According to the statement, initial findings showed the bomber targeted Indian embassy.

'Terrorists in cooperation with some secret agencies in the region carried out this attack,' it said.

The victims were mostly civilians including women and children, Fahim added.

An Indian Foreign Ministry official confirmed that Indian nationals were among the casualties, and said embassy officials going to work were the target of the attack at about 8:30 am outside the embassy gate.

'The government of India strongly condemns this cowardly terrorist attack on its diplomatic mission in Afghanistan. Such acts of terror will not deter us from fulfilling our commitments to the government and people of Afghanistan,' India's External Affairs Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna said in New Delhi.

Sarna said the government was in contact the Indian ambassador in Kabul who was supervising arrangements for medical assistance.

Five people died on the spot while two died in hospital after a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-packed car outside the gate of the Indian embassy, according to the Afghan Defence Ministry.

Local Afghan media reported that at least 15 people were killed or injured in the attack. A television station quoted doctors from the hospital saying at least 16 injured people arrived in the emergency room so far.

'The situation is critical and the blast destroyed several vehicles parked around the area,' a witness said.

Following the blast, US troops in Kabul opened fire on a car near the Iranian embassy, injuring at least one person.

An Interior Ministry spokesman confirmed the incident, saying the US forces were coming to help secure the crime scene.

'A car was coming near to the US forces and US troops opened fire, in result on person injured,' the spokesman said.

In southern Afghanistan, a soldier of NATO-led International Security Assistance Force died from injuries sustained in an explosion, the military said Monday.

It did not identify nationality of the soldier.

In another statement, coalition forces claimed that an unspecified number of militants were killed and seven were detained during an operation Sunday in southern Helmand province.

'Compounds in Req District were searched by coalition forces targeting a militant leader known to smuggle explosives and weapons and heavy machine guns in the area,' it added.

During their search of the compound, coalition forces identified two armed militants, the statement said.