Two civilians were killed and 18 others including a number of US soldiers were injured on Sunday in an explosion on an army base in south-eastern Afghanistan, a provincial spokesman said, dpa reported.
The cause of the blast, inside the base of the 203rd Army Corps in Gardez, the capital of Pakitai province, was not immediately known, said Rahullah Samoon, spokesman for the provincial governor.
The blast took place in a small market inside the base, where foreign soldiers were shopping, he said.
"According to initial information, two civilians were killed and 13 other civilians and three foreign troops were injured," Samoon said.
The nationality of two further injured was not known, he added.
Another official, who did not want to be named, said that the three injured foreign troops were from the United States.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in an online statement, saying one of their suicide bombers by the name of Gul Rasoul carried out the attack.
It claimed that 19 foreign and Afghan soldiers were killed and 13 others were injured.
The statement said that the bomber had infiltrated the army a week ago to carry out the attack.
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