Suicide Bomber Attacks British Embassy Car in Kabul, Kills 5

Kabul: A suicide bomber attacked a British embassy vehicle in Afghanistan's capital Kabul on Thursday, killing at least five Afghan civilians and wounding more than 30 others, officials said.

An embassy spokesman confirmed the attack and said some people in the vehicle were wounded, without providing further details. He added that the vehicle was not carrying any British diplomats.

Kabir Amiri, the administrative head of Kabul hospitals, said that at least five Afghan civilians were killed and up to 34 wounded. Afghan Public Health Ministry spokesman Kanishka Bektash Turkistani said the wounded included five children.

The attack took place in the east of the city, shaking parts of Kabul and sending a huge plume of dust and smoke into the air.

"Foreign vehicles were targeted by a suicide attacker on a motorcycle," Deputy Interior Minister Gen. Mohammad Ayub Salangi said. Earlier, a local police officer said the attacker was in a car packed with explosives.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in a brief statement.

The area of the blast in eastern Kabul has many foreign compounds and international military installations.

In recent weeks, insurgents have launched attacks on military convoys in the area and on compounds housing foreign service companies and their international employees.

Kabul has come under almost daily attack as insurgents intensify their war on local security forces and US and NATO troops, who are set to officially conclude their combat role in the country at the end of next month.