Blast hits Afghan capital Kabul near contractor's compound

A police official said blast appeared to come from a vehicle bomb near a compound for contractors close to airport

KABUL: A large explosion struck close to Kabul airport on Monday, causing at least 10 casualties near to the area where a suicide bomber blew himself up earlier in the day in the latest in a series of attacks in the Afghan capital over the past week.

A police official said a small truck packed with explosives detonated near Camp Baron, a heavily protected residential compound for civilian technical contractors close to the airport, smashing windows and badly damaging nearby houses.

The official said the blast caused at least 10 casualties outside the gates of the compound.



There did not appear to be any inside the compound and there were no immediate details on what numbers of the casualties were killed or wounded.

Medical aid group Emergency, which runs a hospital in Kabul, said it was receiving wounded at its surgical centre.



Monday's attacks occurred as Special Forces in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif fought to suppress a small group of insurgents holding out after an attack on the Indian consulate on Sunday night.

The attacks have coincided with renewed efforts to restart stalled peace talks with the Taliban.