One killed in Afghanistan suicide attack

One civilian was killed and three others were injured in a suicide bomb attack Sunday morning in Mazar-i-Sharif, the capital of northern Afghan province of Balkh, sources said.

"One terrorist approached the motorcade of Deputy Provincial Governor Mohammad Zaher Wahdat at Aryana square of the city. The militant detonated his explosive jacket, killing one passer-by and injuring two other civilians," a provincial police source told Xinhua.

The source said Wahdat escaped the attack but one policeman of the convoy was wounded in the explosion which occurred at around 11 a.m. in the city, 305 km north of Afghanistan's capital Kabul.

At least six people were killed Saturday and more than 20 others injured in a suicide car bomb attack in Kabul.

The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the Kabul attack which happened near the venue of the Loya Jirga or traditional grant assembly due to be held Thursday.

Some 3,000 people from across the country will attend the Jirga to discuss the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) between Kabul and Washington.

Taliban militants fighting the government and NATO-led troops have denounced the Jirga as a trick to pave the way for the permanent presence of US military in the country and asked Afghans to boycott the meeting.