Afghanistan news: Suicide bomber kills 3, injure 12 in Kandahar; rescue operation on

In a suicide bombing in Afghanistan's Kandahar on 21 March, three people were killed and 12 injured, news agency AFP quoted a provincial official as saying.

According to the report, no one has claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing. Meanwhile, Taliban officials have confirmed that multiple explosions have been reported since the start of the holy month of Ramadan on 11 March, added the report.

Though Afghanistan's capital is Kabul, country's Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada lives in Kandahar City as it has been the stronghold of the Taliban movement.

"A suicide attack occurred in which three compatriots were killed and 12 others were wounded, according to preliminary information," AFP quoted the director of information and culture of Kandahar province, Inamullah Samangani, as saying.

Details say the explosion took place at around 8:00 am (0330 GMT) and was targeted at a group of people who waiting outside the New Kabul Bank branch in central Kandahar City.

"Commonly our compatriots gather there to collect their salaries," Samangani told AFP, adding that the "victims were civilians".

Following the explosion, the Taliban authorities surrounded the area outside the bank and did not let journalists close to the site.

In the meantime, unconscious people or dead bodies were being loaded into ambulances in the wake of the blast. Also, firefighters and security personnel were clearing the area, where blood, scraps of clothes, and shoes littered the ground.

Samangani said "The situation is under control" at one of the city's hospitals where the wounded were transported, denying that the need for blood donations was urgent as had circulated on social media.

"There is no such issue, and the wounded people are not in serious condition, they have superficial injuries," he said in a message to journalists.

Ever since the Taliban ended their insurgency after seizing power in August 2021, ousting the US-backed government, the number of bomb blasts and suicide attacks in Afghanistan has markedly declined. But several armed groups – including the regional chapter of the Islamic State group – remain a threat.

Explosion in Pakistan:

Meanwhile, a roadside bomb targeting security forces killed 2 soldiers and wounded 15 in Pakistan's northwestern area Dera Ismail Khan, AP reported quoting officials.

According to the report, the area is a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.

Suspicion is likely to fall on the Pakistani Taliban following they claimed responsibility for the attack on security forces in the past. This group, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, is a separate group that has been emboldened since the Afghan Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021.

On Monday, Pakistan targeted TTP hideouts in Afghanistan, drawing condemnations from Kabul.

With agency inputs.