KABUL, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) -- Nearly a dozen people were confirmed killed or injured in a blast that hit downtown Kabul on Monday, spokesman for the Afghan Public Health Ministry Wahid Majroh said.

So far, three bodies and eight injured people had been taken to hospital, Majroh added.

However,eyewitnesses believed that the number could be higher than reported.

Police have yet to make comment on the explosion.

The blast, obviously a suicide attack according to Majroh, took place in an area close to the foreign ministry, the presidential palace, a shopping mall and a hotel frequented by foreigners and government officials.