At least three people were killed when a suicide attacker blew himself up in Kabul Monday, close to where scores of Afghans had been protesting against Taliban attacks on the minority Hazara ethnic group.

Health ministry spokesman Wahid Majroh said another eight people were wounded in the blast, which struck in front of a high school in the downtown area of the Afghan capital.

A photo shared on WhatsApp showed several bodies laying on the ground.

“The suicide attacker on foot wanted to target protesters, but he was stopped at a security checkpoint some 200 meters from the site,” interior ministry deputy spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said.

“There have been casualties and I can say most of them are security forces.”

A police officer at the scene said he could see 10 to 15 casualties on the ground, as well as body parts.

He said most of the victims were members of Afghanistan’s intelligence agency and police, which had been deployed to secure the city during the protest.

Source: AFP