90 killed as massive sewage tanker bomb rips through Afghan capital's diplomatic district

Update 7 June: Afghanistan's president said Tuesday (6 June) that last week's suicide truck bombing in the heart of the capital killed more than 150 people, making it the deadliest single attack in the country since the 2001 US-led invasion to topple the Taliban.

The attack added to growing concerns about whether Afghan forces can defeat the Taliban or an increasingly destructive Islamic State affiliate without further aid from US and international forces, which formally concluded their combat mission at the end of 2014, switching to a support and counterterrorism role.

No one immediately claimed the bombing, but Afghanistan has alleged Pakistani involvement, accusations denied by Islamabad.

Orignal report: At least 90 people are dead and more than 450 injured after a huge explosion hit the Afghanistan capital, Kabul, on Wednesday (31 May).

The bomb, concealed in a water delivery truck, went off during Kabul's rush hour when roads are packed with commuters, at 8.22 am local time (3.22 am GMT). The blast went off near Zanbaq Square — a highly secure area of the capital that is home to many embassies, diplomatic missions, the Presidential Palace and the Foreign Ministry.

No organisation has claimed responsibility for the deadly attack. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahdid said in a statement that the militant group was not involved in the suicide bombing. He said the Taliban condemned any untargeted attacks that caused civilian casualties.

There has been no word from Isis so far. Both groups have recently carried out attacks in Afghanistan.

The explosion occurred at a heavily fortified zone, which is considered the safest in Kabul, with 3m (10ft) high blast walls protecting the foreign embassies and government offices. The British, Canadian, Chinese, Turkish and Iranian embassies, as well as the Afghan Presidential Palace - are all in the area.

The powerful blast shattered windows of several buildings and blew doors off their hinges hundreds of metres away from the scene.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani strongly condemned the attack which occurred just days into the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

"The terrorists, even in the holy month of Ramadan, the month of goodness, blessing and prayer, are not stopping the killing of our innocent people," a statement from Ghani's office said.

America's top diplomat to Kabul, Hugo Llorens, said the "horrific and shameful" attack demonstrated terrorists' complete disregard for human life and their nihilistic opposition to the dream of a peaceful future for Afghanistan." He offered his condolences to the families of those killed and hope that the injured recovered quickly.

A spokesman for Kabul police, Basir Mujahid, told Reuters that the blast was caused by a car bomb. He said the exact target was not known.

Najib Danish, deputy spokesman for the Afghan Interior Ministry, said that more than 30 vehicles were destroyed or damaged in the explosion.

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said that the blast left several Pakistani diplomats and staff with minor injuries and damaged the residences.

Germany's Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said the explosion wounded employees of the German Embassy and killed an Afghan security guard outside the building. Gabriel said all embassy workers are now safe and offered his condolences to the family of the slain guard.

The Chinese Embassy was partly damaged by the blast. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that all embassy staff were "safe and sound" and that there were no reports of injured Chinese citizens.

The BBC said one of its Afghan drivers, Mohammed Nazir, had been killed in the explosion. Four BBC journalists were injured in the attack and are being treated in hospital.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry said Turkish embassy staff are being evacuated from the Afghan capital after the blast damaged the embassy. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said no Turkish citizens were injured in the attack.

Operation Resolute Support, the NATO-led mission supporting Afghan forces, said the attack demonstrated "a complete disregard for civilians" and revealed "the barbaric nature of the enemy faced by the Afghan people." NATO said that the "vigilance and courage" of Afghan security forces had prevented the vehicle from entering the green zone where embassy buildings were located.

Wednesday's attack came after at least eight people were killed and over 20 injured in a suicide blast on a NATO convoy as it was passing the US embassy in Kabul on 3 May. Isis claimed responsibility for the attack.