Officials have confirmed at least 28 people died and 327 were wounded in Tuesday morning's suicide explosion in Kabul city.
Ismael Kawosi, head of the media department at the ministry of public health, confirmed 327 people were wounded - all of which have been taken to hospital.
Kabul police chief Abdul Rahman Rahimi confirmed 28 people were killed, many of whom were civilians.
The incident took place at about 9am with the apparent target being a Secret Service Unit tasked with protecting VIPs.
The unit's compound is situated close to the Ministry of Defense in Pul-e-Mahmood Khan.
Security forces cordoned off the area as heavy gunfire erupted immediately after the explosion and continued for at least two hours.
Unconfirmed reports indicate gunmen managed to enter the unit's perimeter. However, by late morning security forces had largely managed to bring the situation under control but were conducting a clearing operation, officials said.
President Ashraf Ghani has condemned the incident and labeled it a terrorist attack.
In a statement issued by his office he said such action by the enemy shows the insurgents' inability to tackle security forces on the battle field face to face.
Ministry of interior spokesman Sediq Sediqqi meanwhile confirmed that one attacker had been killed by security forces during the ongoing gun battle.
TOLOnews correspondent at the scene reported that special forces were deployed to the area to bring the situation under control. Security forces were also seen on the roofs of surrounding government offices.
Meanwhile widespread damage was reported to buildings and houses in the vicinity. Many Kabul residents reported damage to their property – especially windows that shattered.
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