Kabul,Dec 17: A car bomb exploded outside of a compound housing a U.S. military contractor in the Afghan capital on Monday, blowing apart an exterior wall and wounding dozens inside, company representatives and police said. In another part of the country, a suspected landmine killed 10 young girls, police said.
The blast on the outskirts of Kabul sent a plume of smoke up in the air and shook windows more than a mile away in the city centre.
The security officer for Contrack, a McLean, Va.—based company that builds facilities for military bases, said a suicide attacker drove a vehicle packed with explosives up to the exterior wall of the compound and detonated the bomb.
Afghan police said they could not confirm if it was a suicide attack or a remotely detonated bomb that had been placed in a parked vehicle.
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the attack in Kabul, saying in an email to reporters that it was a suicide car bomber who targeted the compound because it was company working with the government.
Contrack did not respond to calls or emails asking for comment.
Deputy Interior Ministry spokesman Najibullah Danish said that at least one person was killed in the attack. It was not immediately clear if this could have been the attacker.
