At least five people were killed in an explosion near the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to police in Kabul, in the latest sign of a deteriorating security situation in the country’s capital, writes CNN.

Five civilians were “martyred and a number of others were injured”, Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran wrote on Twitter, adding that the perpetrators would be found and punished.

The explosion took place in Kabul’s diplomatic district, Zanbaq Square, around 4 p.m. local time, Zadran said. Several countries, including Turkey, India and China, have embassies in the area.

Zadran did not say how many people were injured, though the humanitarian organization Emergency said its surgical center in Kabul had received more than 40 patients following the blast.

“This is the first mass casualty in 2023, but certainly one of those with the most patients since the beginning of 2022. So much so that we have also set up beds in the kitchens and canteen”, - Emergency’s Afghanistan director Stefano Sozza said in a statement.