A huge explosion occurred near the US-led Coalition Headquarters in north Kabul on Friday, killing at least six people, residents said.

According to a witness, named Abdul Shar, on the spot, the blast occurred in a village less than half kilometer from the south main gate of Bagram Air Field north of Kabul.

Shar said that more than six bodies had been recovered from a mud-walled yard in the area.

The explosion caused blaze and heavy smoke, which can be seen 20 kilometers from the spot, said an unnamed resident.

US firefighters and medical staff have rushed to the scene for rescue work. More victims were believed to have been buried under the rubble.

Bagram is the main base for the US-led forces hunting remnants of the toppled Taliban regime and the al-Qaida terrorists in Afghanistan.

The cause of the explosion was not clear.

Blast near US base in Afghanistan caused by ammunition explosion: local residents

The huge blast near the US-led Coalition Headquarters in north Kabul was caused by ammunition explosion, a Bagram-based journalist, Jahed Ahadi, told Xinhua over the phone on Friday.

Jahed Ahadi said the compound where the explosion occurred was an ammunition storage. Different kinds of ammunition were stored there, including rockets, light weapons and various kinds of bullets.

When the explosion took place, there were around 30 workers in the compound and at least 7 workers were killed and a dozen others were injured in the incident, Ahadi said.

When talking with Xinhua over the phone, Colonel Gregg Tooley, a spokesman for the US troops in Afghanistan, also guessed it was probably an ammunition storage blast.

According to Tooley, in addition to at least 6 deaths, there were some 15 people still inside the yard where the blast occurred and their conditions were not so clear.

The Bagram-based medics and US firefighters were sent to the spot, said the spokesman, and around 100 Afghan soldiers were also on guard there.

A huge explosion occurred less than 1 kilometer from the headquarters of the US-led coalition troops at Bagram in north Kabul on Friday afternoon.

According to a witness, named Abdul Shar, on the spot, the blast occurred in a village less than half a kilometer from the south main gate of Bagram Air Field north of Kabul. Shar said six bodies had been recovered from a mud-walled yard there.

The explosion caused blaze and heavy smoke which can be seen 20kilometers from the spot, said an unnamed resident.

Up to now, the cause of the explosion is not clear and no one claimed responsibility for the incident.

Bagram Air Field is the main base for a 12,500-strong US-led coalition force hunting remnants of the ousted Taliban regime and the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden.
 
(Xinhua News Agency September 20, 2003)