KABUL, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- At least 10 people were killed and many others injured after an explosion and ensuing gunfight rocked outside a gate of the Kabul airport in the Afghan capital on Thursday, multiple sources said.
"A suicide bomb blast occurred in the middle of a crowd roughly at 6:00 p.m. local time outside a crowded gate of the airport," witness Abdul Wakil told Xinhua by phone.
People were shifting the wounded by hand carts and stretchers as the road leading to the airport's Abbey Gate was blocked in the past days.
Ambulances, taxis and vehicles arrived near the site shortly after the blast, he said.
Local TV channel Tolo News aired a footage from an emergency hospital where dozens of vehicles were shifting the wounded.
At least three U.S. servicemen and some Taliban guards were said to be among the injured, according to reports.
The blast, which was reportedly caused by a suicide bomber, happened after Western nations warned of a terrorist attack at the airport as thousands of people gathered waiting for evacuation flights to leave the country.
The U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan issued a security alert on Wednesday warning Americans to stay away from the airport due to security threats.
The U.S. Department of Defense confirmed the explosion outside the Kabul airport on Thursday.
"We can confirm an explosion outside Kabul airport. Casualties are unclear at this time. We will provide additional details when we can," Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby tweeted.
As the Aug. 31 deadline looms for the U.S. troops to withdraw from Afghanistan, the United States has been scrambling to evacuate Americans and its Afghan partners from the country since the Taliban took control of Kabul on Aug. 15.
Another explosion was also reported outside a hotel near the airport soon after the first blast. Enditem
