Suicide bombers attack Indian consulate in Afghanistan

Suicide bombers have detonated explosives near Afghanistan’s city of Jalalabad, killing at least nine civilians.

Officials said the blast took place near the Indian consulate in the eastern Afghan city. More than 20 people were wounded.

New Delhi’s external affairs office says all Indian officials are safe.

Most of the victims were from a nearby mosque. Indian officials say none of their citizens were hurt.

Three bombers drove up in a car before detonating their explosives, police said.

Gunfire resounded through the area for at least an hour following the blast, which struck at around 10am local time, near the consulate entrance.

The attack followed a world-wide travel alert issued by the US on Friday, saying that al-Qaeda could be planning attacks in August, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa.

The US has ordered the closure of 21 embassies and consulates on Sunday, including its Kabul mission.

Nangarhar police chief Mohammad Sharif Amin told Reuters that the bomber detonated a car packed with explosives outside the consulate and an adjacent mosque.

The consulate was the intended target, he said, but most casualties were from the mosque.

Roads near the Indian consulate remained blocked as gunfire rattled through the area, deputy provincial police chief Masoom Khan Hashimi said. 

A Taliban spokesman told AFP that the group does not claim responsibility for the attack.

Indian buildings in Afghanistan have been targeted before.

In 2008 and 2009, the Indian embassy in Kabul was attacked twice with dozens of people killed.

Source: Agencies / THE TIMES OF EARTH