Afghan Taliban attack Isaf convoy near Kabul compound

The Taliban say they carried out a suicide bomb attack on a convoy outside an international compound in the east of the Afghan capital, Kabul.

A militant in a car detonated explosives as the convoy was leaving the heavily-fortified Green Village residential complex, say officials.

A family of six in a passing car were killed in the blast.

The attack took place as the Afghan government comes under pressure to make peace with the Taliban.

Initial investigations indicate that it was suicide car bomb attack, said an Afghan interior ministry spokesman, Sediq Sediqi.

"A small car packed with explosives hit two vehicles as they were exiting the Green Village compound," he told the AFP news agency.

Confusion

The BBC's Afghanistan correspondent, David Loyn, said six members of the same family were killed in the blast.

He said the mother and four children died at the scene, while the father died in hospital of his injuries.

Gunfire could be heard for some time following the explosion outside Green Village, which is surrounded by blast walls and protected by dozens of security guards.

Security guards fired their weapons for some minutes in confusion, although there were no other insurgent attackers, said our correspondent.

The Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) confirmed that a car bomb attack had occurred in Kabul and said that "there was one enemy killed as a result of the attack".

"We have no operational reports of Isaf personnel fatalities," it said in a statement.

Most of the residents of the Green Village complex are contractors working as security guards for international agencies.

Green Village was last attacked by a car bomb in May 2012, which killed eight people.

The latest attack took place as foreign forces, diplomatic missions, and international organisations have increased their security in recent weeks.

Most foreign troops are due to leave Afghanistan by December 2014, with Afghan security forces already taking over their security responsibilities.

The US has been pushing for peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban ahead of the withdrawal.