Suicide bomber kills 30

Kabul, Afghanistan (AP):

A suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance to an Afghan government office yesterday killing at least 30 people, many who were waiting in line to obtain government identification cards, police said.

The attack occurred around noon in Imam Sahib district of Kunduz province in northern Afghanistan where there has been a sharp slide in security in recent months, said district police chief Abdul Qayum Ebrahimi. At least 40 people were wounded in the blast, he said.

"We were in a meeting. It was a very powerful explosion," said Ebrahimi, who works in the district police office next door to the blast site. "People had gathered in the front of the department to get identification cards."

He said the explosion occurred in the district centre on a day when people gather to shop.

"They become the target of the terror today," he said.

Violence has been on the rise in the north, where there are known hide-outs for the Taliban, al-Qaida and fighters from other militant factions, including the Haqqani network, Hizb-i-Islami and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. NATO has sent more troops to the north and has been pushing harder into militant-held areas.