A suicide bomber detonated a car bomb outside the Save the Children office in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad Wednesday as gunmen stormed the premises in an ongoing attack that wounded 11 people so far, according to a local official.
A massive blast was heard near the Save the Children offices early Wednesday, according to witnesses, in what appeared to be a coordinated attack on the international NGO that has a long history of working in Afghanistan.
“At around 9:10am a suicide attacker detonated a car bomb at the entrance of Save the Children’s compound in police district three of Jalalabad city,” Nangarhar governor spokesman Attaullah Khogyani told AFP.
“A group of armed men then entered the compound. So far 11 wounded people have been brought to hospitals.”
Special forces arrived at the scene of the attack and cordoned off a large area around the premises, according to the Afghan Tolo TV station.
The attackers also tossed hand grenades towards security forces, a police officer on the scene told Afghan journalist Bilal Sarwary.
Afghan security services have cordoned off a large area around the compound, while relatives of Save the Children staffers, anxious for news of their loved ones, rushed to the scene of the attack.