One injured in Kabul UN house blast
A bomb exploded in a drainage ditch in front of a United Nations’ guest house in Kabul today, injuring at least one Afghan civilian.
The blast shattered the window of a pharmacy across the street and left a small crater in a sewage canal.
There was no damage to the UN International Committee Association guest house, which is home to 45 foreigners employed by the United Nations, said Mohammed Mirzar, the house’s manager.
Police said one Afghan passer-by was injured and taken to hospital.
“We are searching for who did it, but for the time being nobody has been arrested,” said a spokesman.
He blamed the blast on opponents of the government, suggesting either al-Qaida or supporters of former prime minister Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.
Security in the Afghan capital was stepped up following the July 6 assassination of Vice President Abdul Qadir. His killers remain at large.
On August 15, an explosion in a storm drain broke windows but caused no injuries at the Afghan Telecommunications Ministry.
Last month, Afghan authorities said a would-be car bomber was arrested after a traffic accident en route to a target.
Afghan officials said he told interrogators he was assigned by al-Qaida to assassinate President Hamid Karzai or, failing that, to kill foreigners.
On Saturday, security forces said they discovered a suspected al-Qaida chemical laboratory complete with explosives and suspicious documents in a house in the capital.
The house was formerly occupied by the Saudi non-governmental organiSation Wafa, which was among the organizations that the United States believes were connected to Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network.
