Car bomb explosion rocks Kandahar

KABUL, Afghanistan, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- A powerful car bomb explosion Wednesday killed or wounded at least two dozen people in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan, police said.

The attack about 11:45 a.m. occurred near the provincial council and the intelligence service offices, Xinhua news agency reported.

The agency said its reporter at the scene counted 26 injured people being taken to hospital.

It quoted a witness as saying he saw two bodies on the ground. It also quoted a police official as saying the death toll could be higher.

The explosion destroyed two nearby homes, the report said.

Ahmed Walli Karzai, brother of Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, told the BBC he was meeting with local politicians when the explosion occurred.

The Xinhua report said there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack but Ahmed Walli Karzai told the BBC he blamed the Taliban for the "cowardly act."