Suicide Attack In Afghanistan Kills At Least 30 People

A suicide bomb attack on a bank branch in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad has killed at least 30 people, officials said.

Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, spokesman for the provincial governor in Nangarhar province, said on Saturday that more than 80 people were also wounded in the attack in Jalalabad, the provincial capital.

"There are reports of many wounded people in critical condition at the hospital," Abdulzai said.

The attacker detonated an explosive-laden motorcycle, targeting a crowd of both military personnel and civilians who were gathered outside the bank to receive their monthly salaries. The bank branch is located in the heart of a crowded commercial district, Abdulzai said.

Another blast was reported Saturday near a shrine in Jalalabad, but no one was hurt. A third blast was also heard in Jalalabad, but it was later reported as a controlled explosion by the Afghan army in Nangarhar, Abdulzai said.

Meanwhile another bombing in the Behsud district of Nangarhar province killed one civilian and wounded two others, Abdulzai said, adding that it appears a magnetic bomb was attached to a normal parked car and then detonated by remote control.

The Pakistani government, which is coordinating with Afghanistan on counter-terrorism issues, condemned the Saturday attacks. A statement released by the Pakistani Foreign Ministry called the bombings cowardly and indiscriminate, and said attacks against civilians have no justification under any circumstances.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.