Multiple people have died and wounded after a deadly blast hit a hotel in central Kabul on Monday, January 19, city police and the Afghan government said. The cause of the blast was unclear.
"An explosion occurred in a hotel on Gulfaroshi Street in Shahr-e-Naw, the fourth district of Kabul city, causing casualties," Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran said without detailing the cause.
A purported video of Kabul hotel blast circulating on social media showed a car driving near a Chinese hotel before a blast shatters it. It is not yet known if the explosives were placed in a car.
Abdul Mateen Qani, the interior ministry spokesman, told AFP that there are a number of casualties as well as injuries. “We do have casualties, both wounded and killed,” he said.
According to China's news agency Xinhua, two Chinese citizens were also seriously wounded in the Kabul hotel blast, a restaurant employees said.
An Afghan security guard was killed and the restaurant was severely damaged, Xinhua said.
Flower sellers usually work in the area, where there are multiple restaurants and a hospital. Also Read | Donald Trump wants Bagram airbase in Afghanistan back from Taliban: Here's why
A report security agencies as saying that Chinese nationals were the targets in the Kabul hotel blast case. According to Tolo News, the exact number of casualties has not been disclosed, and the cause and nature of the explosion still remain unclear. Security officials have not yet issued a detailed official statement.
“Investigation teams have begun their research into the nature of the explosion, and its details will be shared with the media later,” Kabul Security Command spokesperson Khalid Zadran said.
